


Katie With the Good Hair

by SuperFriends (Hokum)



Series: Cupids Chokehold [2]
Category: From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series
Genre: Cheating, Dysfunctional Relationships, F/M, Girl Fight Round Two, Kate just wants to eat mozzarella sticks, Kate made a dick cake, Richie gets a surprising birthday present, Seth is so done... again, Sex, Vanessa is on the case, Voyeurism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-28
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-10-24 16:50:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 118,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10745841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hokum/pseuds/SuperFriends
Summary: Seth and Kate are having an affair; Vanessa is sure of it. At first she thought Seth was just messing around with her cheap ass whore of a neighbour Patty, but once she had started following Seth the truth had been revealed to her. Vanessa just needs the evidence to prove it and Richie's birthday party seems like the perfect time to confront her cheating husband and that conniving little witch.Sequel to The One With the Dinner Part from Hell





	1. Chapter 1

Seth is having an affair; Vanessa is sure of it. Well, as sure as she can be without having any actually proof. It’s little things, odd things that only a wife would notice. Ever since it all kicked off at the dinner party she had hosted three months ago, the atmosphere between her and Seth had been awful. Somehow, everything had been turned around on Vanessa and Seth blamed _her_ for the whole incident; it was clearly Richie and his stupid drunk girlfriend who had spoiled it. Vanessa wasn't about to give in and take thermal so they had an almighty row where she accused him, and rightly so, of never sticking up for her when it came to Richie. He was even defending that irritating little church girl who Vanessa was taking even more of a dislike too. Her face had been bruised for weeks and no amount of cover up would hide the purple mark that Kate had left behind. She had screamed and shouted at Seth until she eventually wore him down and he accepted that she wasn't to blame. Vanessa had even gotten Seth to call Richie to tell him off properly and explain that if he had just kept his mouth shut, the fight wouldn't have even happened in the first place. She had made sure to stand next to him whilst he did it, sometimes Seth lied to her about stuff like this, but she could have sworn she heard him on the phone in the middle of the night, whispering to Richie. Maybe Vanessa was just being paranoid but Seth seemed to have become very cold towards her after that and became reluctant to spend time with her. 

 

As the weeks wore on it only got worse and Vanessa was at a loss as to what the problem could be. Now Seth barely speaks to her or seems interested in anything thats going on in her life. Not even when she had come home in tears because her boss had invited everyone to his annual wine tasting evening except her. By some grace of God she had kept her job, everyone present had decided to pretend like the dinner party never happened, but she was no longer invited to social events and everyone mostly just ignored her. Seth had just shrugged and told he was going out and would be home late.That was when she started thinking that Seth might be having an affair; normally he would try and placate her or attempt to stop her angry tirade but now he just seemed uninterested at best. He was also going out at weird times and the millage on his car didn't add up, she had checked, with where he said he was going. So, she had started following him; just short journeys at first, when she was on her lunch break at work. It didn't really amount to much as he was mainly just going to the store or driving Richie around places. However a few weeks ago, Seth started going out on the weekend and not telling her where he was going or he would lie and say he was going to El Rays. Vanessa would ring and give a false name when she asked for him but was always told that he hadn't been in the bar all day. Following him on the weekend seemed to yield better results and she had discovered him entering the same house twice; both times she hadn't been able to find anywhere to park and by the time she had circled round a few times, Seth’s car was gone. Not this time though; this time she had a full proof plan to catch him in the act. 

 

Seth had grunted at her that he was busy with “stuff for the bar” on the following Saturday so Vanessa had smiled sweetly and pretended to believe him. She had already snuck into his office one night and made a copy of his work calendar; she knew full well he had the whole day clear. At six o clock the next morning she had leapt out of bed, told a half asleep Seth that she was going to the gym, and sped off in her car. Then she had waited; her eyes fixed on the house that she had seen Seth going into. Fortunately she had been able to get a good spot this time, not good enough to see the front of the house but she would still be able to see Seth’s car pull up. Almost three hours she sat there, her stomach churning with nervous energy as she waited to see if Seth would show up. It had got to a point when she had almost decided to turn around and go home when she spotted Seth’s sleek black car coming up the road. 

 

“Ohh, I got his ass now,” Vanessa muttered to herself as Seth got out of his car and quickly walked up to the house.  

 

It was too far away for her to be able to see who opened the door; she could find that out later when she went back to knock the teeth out of the whore that lived there. What she needed first was evidence. Somehow Seth always had this way of convincing her that he wasn't messing around behind her back so she started taking pictures of his car parked outside. Forty minutes later, Vanessa was dripping with sweat as the heat in her car reached an almost unbearable level; her back was sticking to the leather upholstery but she daren't open the windows just incase Seth looked over and caught her when he was leaving. Her brain was still swirling with thoughts about just exactly what or who Seth was doing in there when he suddenly appeared at the front of the house. Vanessa hunkered down in her seat and peered over the steering wheel to see which little whore Seth was meeting. He was still standing on the front porch, waiting with his car keys, when another person exited the house and Vanessa craned her head forward a little further. Its probably one of those dumb bar girls or that girl that always comes to El Ray’s on the acoustic nights. She’s always flirting with him, tossing her hair about and giggling stupidly at all of Seth’s dumb jokes. Finally the girl comes into focus, pulling her shirt back on over her vest and pushing her long shiny brown hair out of her face, and Vanessa’s eyes go wide with shock. It wasn't a bar girl or even a stripper; it was Kate. 

 

“So where did you get to today then,?” Seth asks her as they sat down to dinner together later that evening, “You were gone all day.”

 

They'd been eating dinner mostly in silence as Vanessa didn't trust herself to speak and Seth had seemingly grown bored of her one word answers. Inside she was almost boiling over to the point of explosion with rage. Of all the people she thought that Seth might cheat on her with, Kate Fuller was very low down on the list. How could Seth even consider sleeping with that saintly little preachers daughter when he had her to come home to? It didn't make any sense! Vanessa had had to pull into a lay-by on her way home as she beat the shit out of her steering wheel and screamed all her anger out. It had also given her time to think and perhaps she had missed the signs that something had been going between Seth and Kate, they've always had their little inside jokes and lately she’s seen them huddled in corners whispering to each other. Vanessa hadn't paid much attention to it at the time because why would she? Kate was pure as the driven snow and Seth liked his women with a lot more experience; Vanessa had always been able to keep him entertained in the bedroom. It wasn't like Kate was going to be able to show him anything new.

 

“I’m going over to Richie’s later,” Seth was saying to her and Vanessa had to drag herself away from the dark fantasies she was having of shoving Kate down a flight of stairs, “We’re finishing off the last of the redecorating, its looking pretty good over there now.”

 

“Ok,” Vanessa said as she tried to arrange her face into a neutral expression.

 

Seth gave her an odd look; normally she would have kicked up a massive fuss but she needed him out of the house. A plan was beginning to formulate in her head and she needed time to herself to put it into place.

 

“Ok?” he questioned as he frowned at her, “You’ve been giving me shit all week about going up there and now all of a sudden you’re not bothered?”

 

Vanessa gritted her teeth as she tried to refrain from taking her dinner plate and smashing it over his head. Of course she was bothered! First she sees her husband leaving a house with that little skank and now, only a few hours later, he wants go back and see her?! 

 

“I have cleaning to do,” she tells him as calmly as she can, “You’ll just get under my feet.” 

 

“Fine,” Seth sighed as he cleared his plate away and picked up his car keys, “I’ll probably be late so don’t wait up for me.”

 

He kissed her on the cheek but Vanessa found herself go oddly rigid and she barely inclines her head before Seth gave up and left. Once he had gone, she sprinted to the window and hid behind the curtain as she watched his headlights disappear from view. Now to get to work.

 

She still wasn't exactly sure what she had seen but she was certain that Seth was up to something and if that little brat was involved then Vanessa was going to make her pay. What could a man like Seth see in her anyway? Kate was short with barely any breasts and had that annoying “Holier Than Though” attitude about her. She had a little girls body not a woman and she dressed like a teenage boy, all checked shirts and jeans. Seth had been drunk one night and told her that Kate was a virgin before she shacked up with Richie and if that wasn't enough to put you off someone than nothing would. It makes Vanessa’s skin crawl at the very thought of Richie doing anything remotely sexual, which was probably why Kate was after Seth. If its one thing Seth knows how to do it was please a woman in bed. Kate had obviously grown bored of her weird and creepy boyfriend and set her sights on a much bigger prize, namely Vanessa’s husband. This she could understand, lots of women tried to get it on with Seth and it pleased Vanessa no end that at the end of the day, she was the one with a rock on her finger. However that doesn't explain why Seth would sneak around with his precious brothers girlfriend. Vanessa has seen all to often the lengths that Seth will go to protect Richie; Richie could have murdered someone and Seth would still manage to find an excuse for it.

 

No, what she needed was evidence; Vanessa still wasn’t one hundred percent that Kate and Seth were screwing each other but she was going to find out one way or another.

 

Heading into their bedroom, she tips the out the dirty laundry basket and pulls out Seth’s clothes from the day before. There’s no trace of lipstick on his collar and when she holds it up to her nose to sniff, its only got Seth’s manly scent on it. It’s the same with Seth’s underwear; no trace of semen or anything else that might indicate just exactly what her husband has been getting up to behind her back. She does however, find a receipt in his trouser pocket for dinner at a place called “Zolo’s Dinner”. Staring right back at her is an order for a portion of mozzarella sticks, the very thing that Kate is always stuffing her face with. Vanessa clenches her jaw as she tries not to picture the two of them sat together, eating together and to top it all off, that money grabbing little skank had the nerve to get Seth to pay the bill!

 

“Your ass is mine princess,” she spits as she carefully lays the receipt to one side.

 

Seth has his wallet on him so she’ll have to wait to go through that later. The bedside draws don’t yield much either as Seth doesn't really keep much in them. All of Seth’s personal documents are still at Eddie’s as well as everything to do with El Ray’s, he said it was easier for Richie to do the accounts but secretly Vanessa thinks that he doesn't want her looking at them. The only other thing of interest is a box of condoms and a few pain pills. Vanessa pulls the box out and counts how many’s left; they haven't really been having sex that much recently and Vanessa can’t remember how many there were left the last time they did it. A nagging voice in the back of her head is telling her that this is because Seth is getting it else where. 

 

Glancing at the clock she notes that Seth has been gone for almost an hour; enough time for him to get to Richie’s house. Thats if Richie was even there, Seth could have lied about what he was up to this evening just like he did this morning. 

It took exactly forty five minutes to drive to Uncle Eddie’s old house, Vanessa had timed it when she thought Seth was cheating with her neighbour Patty, and another five to park the car and head inside. The voice inside her head was telling her to check out Seth’s story so grabbed her mobile, concealed her number, and dialled.

 

“Hello?” Richie’s annoying voice answered but Vanessa ignored him and tried to listen to see if she could hear Seth.

 

“Hello?” Richie asks again but then she can hear Seth in the background asking who’s on the phone and she hangs up before Richie can speak again. At least it proved that Seth was telling the truth but that little witch was still over there with him, probably draping herself all over him like the floozie she is. Shit. Maybe she should have insisted on going with Seth but Vanessa didn't think her temper would hold out if she saw Kate. The desire to rip that disney princess hair off her head was getting stronger by the minute. They couldn't get up to much, not with Richie there, so Vanessa continues her search and pulls open the closet. Once she’s gone through all the pockets of Seth’s clothes and found nothing she starts pulling out all the junk at the bottom. Finally she finds something interesting, as there was a big box hidden right at the very back of the wardrobe and Vanessa excitedly pulls the lid off.

 

“ _Patient was admitted due to erratic and harmful behaviour… severe psychotic break…hallucinations…suicidal tendencies…”_

 

Vanessa shoves the box to one side in disappointment; it was all Richie’s old hospital paperwork. A big bone of contention in their marriage was how much money Seth kept throwing away every month just to keep Richie in some fancy hospital. She had opened one of the letters the hospital had sent and been horrified at the amount that Seth was spending on his brothers supposed medical needs; it was more than enough to buy them a decent house! Seth just wouldn't see it that way and even had the audacity to yell at her when she rang the hospital to try and arrange a cheaper payment plan. She didn't see what the big deal was; they were married after all and Vanessa should have a say in what they spent his money on. Wasting thousands of dollars on some ridiculous art therapy programme or numerous therapist was not what Vanessa had in mind when she saw how much money Seth had squared away. Truth be told, she was never all that interested whenever Seth brought the topic of Richie up. When they first got together he was merely an annoyance that took Seth away from her every other weekend. From the hushed conversations between Seth and Eddie, that she had secretly listened in on, it didn’t seem likely that Richie would be leaving the hospital anytime soon so she put him out of her mind. Besides, Seth was always miserable whenever he came back from the hospital and would often drink late into the night which had increased Vanessa’s hatred for Richie. Couldn’t he see how selfish he was being? Then suddenly it all changed; Seth was allowed to visit more and the talk about home visits and Richie staying over on the weekend had started, all whilst Vanessa had been pinning her hopes on them moving to a bigger place together. 

 

Seth had been so excited about Richie’s first home visit that he’d gone to the trouble of buying all of Richie’s favourite foods and got a bunch of films for them to watch. It had irritated her that Seth was willing to go out of his way for someone that had only become a financial and emotional burden to them; in the end she had secretly called the hospital and cancelled the visit. Even though Seth had been devastated when it appeared that Richie just didn’t show up, it was for the best Vanessa had reasoned with herself. Nobody knew it was her that called, she hadn't given her name, and the hospital claimed there had been a mix up with another patient. The only person that seemed to have her sussed was Eddie. He never said it outright, but she could tell by the way he looked at her that he knew it was her. All of Richie’s home visits were scheduled to be at his house after that. Now here she was, years later and still having to put up with all Richie’s crap.

 

There was another huge box under that which Vanessa pushed out of the way to see if there was anything else hidden at the back of the wardrobe. Seth should have left this junk at Eddies and not cluttered up their nice tidy home with it; let Richie keep his own damn paper work. She’d been so busy pulling stuff out of the wardrobe that she doesn't hear the sound of Seth’s car pulling into the drive way before its almost too late. Frantically, she stuffs all the boxes back in the wardrobe, pulls her clothes off and throws herself into bed. Not a second later Seth comes creeping into their bedroom and sets about getting himself undressed. She must have missed one of the boxes because theres a loud thud followed by Seth swearing loudly. 

 

“‘Nessa?” he calls, “What’s all this shit on the floor?”

 

Vanessa lays very still, the covers pulled up over her head, and pretends to be asleep and its not long before she hears Seth shoving the mess aside and heading into the bathroom. Risking a quick peak at the clock, its well after midnight; what on earth could he have been doing at Richie’s that was so important? The bathroom light goes out and Vanessa pulls the covers up once and theres a dip in the bed next to her as Seth climbs in and turns away from her.

 

It only takes about five minutes until Seth starts snoring loudly and Vanessa gently leans over him and sniffs his hair. There’s no trace of perfume, none that she could detect anyway, but then Kate didn't really wear it all that often because it made Richie sneeze. Nor where there any lipstick marks anywhere that she could see but, again, Kate didn't wear lipstick all that much. Kate was a crafty little bitch thats for sure, and Vanessa wouldn't put it past her to try cover up her tracks before sending Seth back home to his wife. Seth is still snoring so she creeps out of bed and rummages through his trousers pockets. His phone is in there but disappointingly the battery is dead. She does find his wallet, which is full of old receipts and she spends hours matching them all up to Seth’s bar schedule. There’s at least two more for that dinner, along with orders of Kate’s beloved mozzarella sticks, and a bunch of gas receipts for gas stations that are nowhere near where they live. Vanessa’s mind starts to go into overdrive as she tries to put the pieces to the puzzle together but she just cant seem to make them fit. Seth cheating was kind of a given, but with Kate? There had to be something more here, something she’s not seeing.

 

Seth gives a sleepy grunt and rolls over so Vanessa puts his wallet back but hangs onto the dinner receipts she found. Then she lays back down in bed and stares at the ceiling, her head was just a swirling mass of thoughts. Maybe they weren't sleeping together, maybe they were just doing something else? But what? What could they possible be doing that didn't involve that idiot Richie? Kate and Richie are practically glued together at all times so Vanessa was having a hard time believing that Kate would cheat on him. However Richie is crazy and Seth is good looking and charming; why wouldn't Kate fall for him? The little bitch probably started flirting with him when they’d had to stick Richie back in the hospital. after those two freaks had ruined her dinner party it was Vanessa who should have been complaining that she was stressed, not Richie! But then Richie starts whining about how he doesn't feel right and begs Seth to take him back to the psychiatric ward. Good. Seth should have left him there and moved on with his life like Vanessa had kept telling him to. It was all just attention seeking behaviour and Seth fell for it every time. Even though he was only gone for three weeks, Richie must have seen more of Seth than Vanessa had. It was even worse when he got out; Seth had insisted on staying over there until his brother was deemed safe to be left alone. Vanessa had seen all those old scars on Richie’s arms and it creeped her out. He was clearly unstable no matter how much Seth tired to convincer her otherwise. Richie just wanted his brother to be as miserable as he was and Vanessa was damned if she was going to let that happen. Turning over the incident in her mind Vanessa now realised that it wasn't just Richie that Seth was seeing more of, it was Kate as well. Seth was still pissed at her over the dinner party so she had held er tongue whenever he said he was just “popping round to see Kate” or when he stayed over there on a couple of occasions. She could see it now; Kate pretending to be all sad about Richie when really she was just after an excuse to see Seth, to pull him into her web. Whatever was going on with Kate and Seth she was going to get to the bottom of it one way or another.

 

 

 

 

“Vanessa?” Seth called out to her from the kitchen, breaking her out of her tumultuous thought pattern.

 

“Yeah?” Vanessa replies as Seth stands in the doorway of their bedroom and she lowers the covers from her forehead.

 

“I’ll be back late tonight,” he tells her.

 

“Where are you going?” Vanessa asks suspiciously but Seth is already heading out of the door.

 

As soon as she hears Seth’s car leave, Vanessa drags herself out of bed and starts pulling out all the kitchen draws until she finds the spare key to Eddie’s house. Seth had insisted that it was only for emergencies, like Richie was going to top himself the moment his brothers back was turned. So what? Richie wasn’t a baby and if he wanted to do something selfish like that then they should just let him get on with it. Somehow Seth didn’t seem to have the same viewpoint as his wife, and he always got annoyed at her for bringing it up.

 

Key in hand, she drives all the way out to Eddie’s old house and parks in the next street over. The rest of the journey she makes on foot and secludes herself behind the back fence and waits for Kate and Richie to leave for the afternoon. Luck is on her side and she’d only has to wait for about forty minutes before the pair of them head out the door; hand in hand and looking every inch the happy couple. It sickened her. Not that she felt bad for Richie, she didn’t give a flying fuck about him, but it enraged her that that little witch thought she could just steal Vanessa’s man and get away with it. Kate would get what was coming to her, Vanessa would see to that one way or another.

 

The house smelt strongly of paint and Vanessa almost tripped over a paint can in her rush to get inside unseen. She hadn’t been round to Richie and Kate’s for months, aside from one very awkward evening when she and Kate were forced to apologise to each other and agree to move past the face punch and hair pulling incident. They had only just started redecorating Eddie’s then and now it seems like they're  almost finished; only the hallway was still stripped bare and all the furniture had been temporarily moved into the living room. Vanessa made a beeline for the coat closet that stood against the back of the living room wall. It was a lot more organised than hers and Seth’s and she found Kate’s jacket easily enough and started going through the pockets. Suspiciously, there wasn’t much in them apart from a few old receipts, none of which matched up with when Seth had claimed to be working, and an empty candy bar wrapper. Slamming the door closed, Vanessa then set about pulling the couch apart and digging down the back of it; again nothing apart from some stale popcorn, a few cents and an old shopping list of Eddies. Speaking of Eddie, his urn was still sat out on the coffee table for everyone to see; it was creepy and god only knows why Richie wanted to hang onto it for so long. 

 

It seemed highly suspicious to her that she couldn't find anything at all in Kate’s clothing or anywhere else in the living room. Normal people don't just suddenly clean out their pockets. Vanessa scowled to herself as she decided that Kate had clearly decided to start getting rid of anything that could tie her to Seth.

 

“Bet you think you’re so clever,” Vanessa says viciously as she puts the couch back together, “Well I’m on to you girl.”

 

Kate had obviously made herself at home Vanessa noted, as she looked around the rest of the living room, as she had brazenly hung up pictures of her own family alongside many of Seth and Richie when they were younger. Vanessa didn’t have any pictures of Seth in her own house because it appeared that none existed that didn't include Richie and she’d be damned if she was hanging a picture of him up on her wall. The house also had much more of a woman’s touch then it ever did when Eddie was alive; although the TV cabinet was still full of all those stupid old movies that Seth and Richie never seemed to get tired of watching. The couch even had cushions with the initials R and K crocheted on them, clearly the little princess was already staking her claim on Eddie’s house. That was another thing that had pissed Vanessa off; this house should have been hers and Seth’s, they were the married couple after all. It was much bigger than the place Vanessa and Seth lived in and such a big property was clearly wasted on those two freaks. As she started adding pieces together it was becoming clear to Vanessa that Kate’s little plan was to sucker Richie into getting Eddie’s house, and then sink her claws into Seth for the inheritance money. Not if Vanessa has anything to say about it she won’t; she’ll rip the hair right of Kate’s head before she’ll let her move in on her husband. 

 

Time was catching up with her, so Vanessa moved quickly and made her way to the newly installed kitchen to restart her search. Kate was clearly an idiot if she thought that she could get away with sleeping with Seth without Vanessa finding out. Her mind raced with between images of Seth begging her for forgiveness and her beating the crap out of Kate. One way or another she would find out what was going on, she seethed as she started wrenching out the kitchen draws. Again, she found nothing and it was starting to really piss her off as she slammed the draw shut, it was almost like Kate knew Vanessa was coming. Maybe that was why she made such a big show of looking all loved up with Richie when they left? Vanessa wouldn't put it past her. 

 

“Come on,” Vanessa mutters as she stares around wildly, “There has to be something.”

 

Then she spots it; sitting bold as brass on the kitchen counter top was Kate’s laptop. Vanessa must have missed it when she first came in; her paranoia was beginning to take over any rational thought process at that point. Grabbing it eagerly, it wasn’t even password protected, she dives right into Kate’s personnel files.

 

It’s full of her college work, or whatever the hell it is she does with her time when she’s not stealing other peoples husbands. Nothing in the documents seems to hold anything of interest, aside from some terrible poetry, so she moves on to the pictures. Vanessa almost wishes she hadn't because it appears that Kate has documented every single second of her life with Richie. Kate and Richie at the county fair, Kate and Richie on a picnic, Kate and Richie at the beach, it went on and on until Vanessa got sick of staring at the two of them and started hunting around for something else. There’s lots of old photos of Eddie, Seth had mentioned something about digitising the old copies, and a ton of Kate’s family. There’s a folder called ‘Mom’ that Vanessa vengefully considers deleting before she eventually decides against it; it would be too obvious that it was her once Kate found out. There’s nothing much else of note, and she’s about to give up when she spots an unnamed folder, buried deep amongst endless pictures of Kate and Richie grinning inanely at each other. 

 

“Yes!” Vanessa yells triumphantly as she punches the air; she’s struck gold with this one.

 

It’s full of semi naked pictures of Kate, dressed up in her best lingerie, and posing in what she clearly thinks is a sexy way. Vanessa can’t be certain but it looks like most of them Kate has taken herself; you could tell by the way the camera was positioned. 

 

“So much for the Little Miss Innocent act,” Vanessa seethes as she scrolls through the pictures. 

 

This could be useful Vanessa muses as she begins to elaborate on her scheme as she doesn't just want to stop Kate sleeping with her husband; she wants to destroy Richie’s relationship with Seth as well. Digging deeper she finds a couple of fully nude shots that Vanessa can’t help but compare her own body with. Without her clothes on Kate doesn't look so much like the sweet innocent, little choir girl she pretends to be and Vanessa would be lying if she said she wasn't a little threatened by the other girl. Her brain is buzzing now, she needs to get into Seth’s phone to see just how many of these pictures Kate had sent to him. Why else would she have them on her computer if not to lure Seth to her? An evil thought pops into her head, as she scrolls past a shot of Kate laying on her back with her hand touching herself between her legs, and she smiles broadly. Perhaps Pastor Fuller would like to know just exactly what his precious daughter gets up to when he’s not around. During one of their forced “family outings” to the beach, Kate had mentioned something about her and Richie having to sleep in separate rooms when they went to stay with her dad. They clearly do not do that here, yet another man in her life that perfect little Kate was telling lies to. Pulling out her phone, Vanessa snaps a few pictures of Kate’s nudes before she moves on to search through the rest of the laptop. There’s not much else of interest so she shuts it and moves it back into its original position.

 

That just leaves the rest of the house and Vanessa reasons that she’ll have better luck trying Kate and Richie’s bedroom first; she has no way of knowing when the occupiers will be home and she doesn't want to get caught. What used to Kate and Richie’s room was now a tastefully decorated spare bedroom, they had apparently moved into Eddie’s old bedroom which was bigger and had it own bathroom attached. Seth had spent ages helping them to redecorate and Vanessa has to begrudgingly admit that the room looks quite nice now its not full of Eddie’s old man tat. It was done up in dark greens and greys with old solid wooden furniture and a huge bed in the middle. Her own bedroom is half the size of this and Vanessa scowls as she goes to inspect the bed; why does Kate get to have everything that should be hers?

 

There’s a few strands of dark hair on one of the pillows but its longer than Seth’s so it must belong to Richie; maybe Kate isn't stupid enough to sleep with Seth on her own doorstep after all. The rest of the bed is so pristinely made that there’s no way that Vanessa could ever remake it as neatly; instead she wanders over to the dresser and pulls open the draws. The first one has an old jewellery box inside which Vanessa instantly discards. It’s full of what looks like antique jewellery and that dumb cross Kate used to wear before Richie got her the locket that she never shut up about. It wasn't even that nice; just a lump of old silver that Richie had her initials engraved on. He really was an idiot to spend all that money on her but, clearly no other girl would have him, so he had to keep her sweet one way or another. There’s a few odd bits of make up in another draw but not much else. More pictures are tapped around the mirror; Richie and Kate, Seth and Richie and couple of the Fuller family. Vanessa pulls down a photo of Richie, Kate and her dad all smiling happily at the camera before she tosses it aside; it’s all such a lie. All this happy family bullshit is just pointless and she had tried to explain to Seth many times that she was the only person that should matter to him. Eddie was dead, Richie was nuts and Little Miss Perfect Kate wasn't even a real Gecko. 

 

The bedside table draws turn out to be a bit more interesting, although the first thing Vanessa pulls out is a bottle of lube which she drops instantly. Even the thought of what Richie would be doing with that repulses her; probably because Seth still treats him like a child that needs coddling. All though it had peaked her interest when he’d turned up with Kate one day, half the time he doesn't even like anyone touching him and Seth had never mentioned any pervious girlfriends. Brushing the lube aside she finds a packet of Kate’s birth control pills, a few other random items and a pill dispenser of Richie’s medication for the week. Vanessa picks up the orange plastic tube and eyes it thoughtfully. A few years ago, when Richie was still living with Seth, she had switched out Richie’s medication with some similar looking vitamins. Some people might consider that a terrible thing to do but she had been desperate to get rid of him and have her old life with Seth back. It was all just so unfair; she had gone from spending all her time with Seth to being pushed into the background whilst Seth ran around after his lunatic brother. She had been furious when Seth had announced, without even discussing it with her, that Richie was being released from the hospital and coming back to live with them. Looking back, she can see that that’s _exactly_ when all the trouble had started in their marriage; they might have fought a lot before but it wasn't anything compared to when Vanessa had been forced to put up with Richie. Why couldn't Eddie him or Seth leave him in the hospital like Vanessa kept telling him to? What good would it do either of them anyway? Seth should have been focused on his life with her and not pandering to the needs of his self centred little brother. 

 

It was only when it became clear that Seth was going to focus all his attention on Richie that Vanessa decided to take action. In those early days she had done a lot to try and get rid of Richie but none had been entirely successful. Seth kept going on about how his brother was “fragile” and needed time to adjust being back in the world again. No fucking way was Vanessa going to play Mommy to that psycho; they don't lock you up for five years if there isn't something deeply wrong with you. What if he became violent and attacked her? To make matters worse, Seth had given her a whole list of things she couldn't do or say, ridiculous stuff like not letting the timer go off on the microwave, as if Richie was a bomb that might unintentionally explode. Vanessa often conveniently “forgot” about most of these things and it was a great source of amusement to her when she figured out what would make Richie cry or get upset at the drop of a hat. It was only when Richie began having awful nightmares and Seth moved into his brothers bedroom that she realised she’d have to think of a different tact. Switching the pills wasn't even the first thing she had tried, but it was difficult to get to Richie as Seth was stuck to him twenty four seven. Eventually she got the idea to switch his meds from an old episode of Murder She Wrote that she had been watching and it was surprisingly easy to carry out her plan. The best part was that even if the switch was discovered the blame could easily be passed to Richie; nobody was going to believe a crazy person after all. Frustratingly it took about a month for anything to happen, Richie continued to behave just as strangely as before, and Vanessa was almost at the end of her rope when her prayers were answered. She had persuaded a reluctant Seth to go out to dinner with her, it was just like old times between them until they returned home to find blood all over the kitchen floor and Richie standing in the middle of it completely hysterical. In the end it had actually been quite frightening and had further reinforced her view that Richie should not be allowed around normal people. She had been so pleased with herself when Richie was carted off in an ambulance and had thought that was it for sure; her plan had worked perfectly. Unfortunately in the end the incident had done the exact opposite of what she had wished for and the brothers had clung onto each other harder then ever. Seth was adamant that Richie would be fine just as long as he stayed with him, like Seth could fix him all by himself. Nobody ever found out that it was Vanessa who switched the pills; the doctor just concluded that the batch must have been faulty and prescribed a new dose. The pills rattle loudly in her palm and bring her back to the present and she decided that switching Richie’s meds isn't the right option this time. That would still leave her Kate to deal with, so she puts them back and shuts the draw. 

 

A mass of Books are piled up on what must be Richie’s side of the bed so Vanessa decides to snoop through the chest of draws to see what Kate might have hidden in there. The first draw is a bunch of Richie’s underwear, gross, Kate’s sleep stuff and some matching pyjamas. The second is half empty and only had a few plain white bras but Vanessa keeps digging until her fingers close around something soft. It’s a minuscule black lacy thong, practically see-through and would barely have fitted around one of Vanessa legs. Her fingers tighten around the material as she remembers a similar one of her own that had Seth brought for her, he likes trashy hooker stuff like this, and her brain begins to go into meltdown. The thong didn't match with any of the rest of the stuff Kate had and it was clearly hidden were nobody would find it, why else would it be shoved right at the back like this? Because Kate wanted something to parade around in in front of Seth with a nasty voice inside her head told her. Richie was probably too medicated to get it up or notice what was going on right under his nose. No, it was clear to her that Seth was the only Gecko that was getting to see these. 

 

The sound of the front door slamming echoes through the house and Vanessa freezes as she hears the patter of feet heading in her direction. Throwing the thong back in the draw and slamming it shut, she looks around wildly for a place to hide. Perhaps the bathroom? But what if Kate went in there and found her crouched down behind the toilet? The footsteps are almost at the bedroom door and Vanessa manages to dive underneath the bed just as the door swings open. Holding her breath, she peers out as a small pair of feet walk towards the bed and something heavy thumps down above her. Kate toes off her shoes and starts singing some old country song to herself as she wanders about her bedroom whilst Vanessa tries to flatten herself into the floor. Not even she can think of a good enough reason as to why she would be hiding under Kate and Richie’s bed so its imperative that she doesn't get caught. Somehow in the small space and danger of being found out, her breathing sounds tens times louder under and she waits anxiously as Kate continues to putter about her bedroom. It didn't seem like Richie was with her which gave Vanessa the upper hand; she could still sneak past Kate once the other girl had left the bedroom. After what seems like an eternity Kate looks like she’s about to head into the bathroom when the sound of a phone ringing makes her stop and head back towards the bed. For one horrible moment Vanessa thinks its her own phone but then she hears the sound of a purse being opened followed by Kate answering the phone.

 

“Oh hey Seth… no I’m home alone, are you going to come by or shall I meet you this time?”

 

This time? Vanessa clenches her fists so hard that her palms start to hurt; how long had these two been fucking each other?!

 

“Ok but it’ll have to be a quickie, Richie is going to be home soon and he’s going to know something up if I keep lying to him.”

 

That little whore! That sanctimonious little slut is arranging a hookup with her husband! It’s all Vanessa can do to stop herself from rolling out from underneath the bed and breaking the phone over Kate’s head.

 

 

“… ha ha very funny. Goodbye Seth.”

 

Vanessa is trying not to hyperventilate as she hears Kate mutter “Shit” to herself and then the sound of on one of the draws opening. A few moments later Kate’s feet head in the direction of the bathroom and the door slams shut. Vanessa seizes her chance and quickly slides out from underneath the bed. Once she had pulled herself up, she grabs Kate’s purse off the bed and starts to rummage through it. Receipts spill out of Kate’s wallet, but Vanessa doesn't have time to go through them all and match them up with Seth’s movements over the past few weeks, so she leaves them to one side. Kate is still pottering about in the bathroom so Vanessa carries on digging until she finds Kate’s phone. It was locked; a cheesy picture of her and Richie kissing keeps flashing up as the lock screen and it made Vanessa’s lip curl. After a few failed attempts at guessing the pass code she threw the phone aside in a fit of anger. Aside from a half-eaten candy bar, there wasn’t that much else except a CVS bag that was bundled up right at the bottom of Kate’s purse. Vanessa ripped it open and found herself staring at an already opened box of extra large condoms. She stared at them for a few moments before she grabs Kate’s wallet and finds a single condom tucked away behind some expired Starbucks cards. Putting the pieces together she throws the purse down and darts back to Kate’s underwear draw and throws it open; the fancy pair was missing. A blind rage depends on her, it felt like her entire body was shaking and she was halfway to the bathroom door intending to drag Kate out by her hair when she stopped herself. That was exactly what Kate wanted her to do! No, she needed to play them at their own game; Seth and Kate could still weasel out of this as fancy underwear and some condoms didn't exactly amount to much, even with the phone call. Vanessa would need to step up her game if she was going to get one over on that nasty little tramp. As quickly as she can, she puts everything back in its place and sprinted towards the front door.

 

“I stopped by the El Ray’s today,” Vanessa tells Seth later that night at dinner, “Tony said he hadn't seen you all day.”

 

“I was taking Richie to look at that plot near the reservoir,” Seth says casually as he chugs on his beer, “We’re thinking of scattering Uncle Eddie’s ashes there. Richie thinks it’ll be nice for him to have a sea view.”

 

Liar, Vanessa thinks to herself as she grips her knife dangerously. Somehow she had managed to settle herself down in to state of serene calmness before she had seen Seth again. In her head she had decided that she would punish Seth later for his misdeeds, but the it still hurt thinking that Kate had had her tiny hands all over her husband. Once Seth had returned home, far later then he had said he would, Vanessa had carefully scrutinises him for any love bites or marks that that horrid girl might have left. Oddly, Seth’s shirt is buttoned all the way up which was unusual for him and when he tilts his head back to take another drink Vanessa zeros in on three red scratch marks on his neck. The knife in her hand starts to bend slightly as her knuckles tighten around it in indignation. She must be looking very intently because Seth is frowning at her.

 

“Do I have something in my teeth?” he queries as he moves his hand up to his face, “You keep staring at me.”

 

“Can’t a wife look at her husband?” Vanessa asks and then, in a more sultry tone, “Come on baby, we haven't had any fun in ages.”

 

 

“Not tonight, I have to be up early,” he says dismissively as he gets up from the table, “Richie needs me to drive him to his therapist appointment.”

 

Vanessa grips her wine glass but says nothing as her husband walks right past her. Seth has never turned her down before, not even when they were in the midst of having one of their blazing rows. Passion was what stirred them and the aftermath of an argument often led to them fucking each other senseless. Clearly Seth had scratched his itch else where tonight and Vanessa was damned if she was going to let it happen again.

 

Two days later, when she’s doing one of her lunchtime drive byes past Eddie’s house, Vanessa spots Seth car parked brazenly in the driveway. He had told her he was going to be at El Rays all day, she had even called three times just to check! She still has the spare key so she parks her car and barges straight into the house.   

 

There’s a trail of hastily shed clothing leading from the hallway to the open bedroom door. Vanessa sidesteps Kate’s underwear as she listens closely to unmistakable sound of two people having sex. The noises make her stop dead in her tracks; it was different to just think that something was going on between Seth and Kate but to actually hear it was another thing entirely. Her heart is hammering in her chest as she hears Kate cry out in pleasure.

 

“Right there,” Kate groans loudly , “Right there baby… don’t stop.” 

 

Something catches her foot and Vanessa looks down to see a t shirt wrapped around her ankle. The realisation of who it belongs to hits her like a punch in the throat as she snatches it up off the floor; this is Seth’s t shirt! Nothing on earth could stop her now as she tosses the shirt to one side and runs straight towards the open bedroom door.

“You fucking bitch!” she growls as her hands ball up into fists and she prepares to beat the shit out of Kate. 

 

Vanessa is halfway through the door before she comes to a skidding holt as she takes in the sight before her. Kate is still moaning wantonly as she lays on the floor, thankfully facing away from Vanessa, but its not Seth thats causing her such pleasure; its Richie. Vanessa can’t help but stare as Richie and Kate’s naked bodies collide together in a fit of passion. She can’t seem to move her body, her legs are rooted to the spot as she watches Kate and Richie writhe around on the floor together; she can see the sweat glistening on Richie’s back and the nipples on Kate’s bare breasts harden as he leaned down to lick them. 

 

 

“Richie, Richie,” Kate whimpers as she wraps her short legs around Richie’s waist, “Just like that baby…. ugh… feels so good.”

 

Richie’s frantic groaning brings Vanessa back to reality once more and she quickly slides out of the room before she witnesses any more. Thankfully both Richie and Kate were too engrossed in what they were doing to each other to notice that they had had an audience. She was sure that shirt belonged to Seth; he’s worn it the last time he came over to help redecorate Eddie’s. Or that’s what he said he was doing; he was fucking that little skank! Why would they be having sex in the middle of the day anyway? It’s that little bitch, Vanessa knows it is, she’s messing with Vanessa, trying to play mind games with her. It would be the perfect cover up for Vanessa to witness Kate and Richie having sex, then nobody would believe her if she accused Kate of having an affair with Seth. No upstanding preachers daughter like Kate would be sleeping with two brothers now would they? Perhaps Daddy Fuller should have a little taste as to what his daughter gets up to at two in the afternoon. Pulling her phone out, Vanessa creeps quietly back to the bedroom doorway and crouches down to get a better view. Kate is on her hands and knees now, her head hanging down as she groans in pleasure, whilst Richie takes her from behind. Vanessa hits record on her phone just as Kate leans down on her elbows.

 

“Richie… harder,” Kate cries out as Richie fully complies to her wishes.

 

Vanessa films them for a few more minutes before she crawls back to the living room, satisfied that she’s got more ammunition to fire against Kate. Once Jacob Fuller finds out what his daughters been up to, he’ll drag her straight back home and out of temptation for Seth. In one way, she could almost see why Seth would fall for that quaint little virgin act; Richie was clearly dumb enough to fall for it but he was also mentally unstable and therefore deserved what he got in Vanessa’s mind. Kate might act all sweet and innocent but Vanessa had seen a totally different side to her when they'd fought at her dinner party. There was still a bald spot on Vanessa’s head where her hair hadn't grown back yet and Seth had refused to make Kate pay for her to get it fixed at a salon. Probably because he was already fucking her by then she thought bitterly as she self consciously fixes her hair. 

 

Judging by the noises still coming from the bedroom, Vanessa has time to look around a bit more. She still wants to know why Seth’s car was here. Kate’s purse is laying on the kitchen counter top and it would be good to have another crack at Kate’s phone if she can find it. The purse was full of bits of junk, half eaten packets of sour worms, receipts and other random bits of rubbish. Vanessa has to dig all the way to the bottom before she finds the other woman’s phone. She’s barely had the phone in her hand for five seconds when a text message lights up the screen;

 

**Hey; are we still up meeting later? I can get away by five if you can make up an excuse to Richie.**

 

Vanessa stared down in the phone at disbelief as Seth’s message became seared into her brain. She knew it! She knew that there was something going on between those two!!

 

The house suddenly goes deadly silent and Vanessa braces herself to see if she’s going to have to run for it again. She’s about to leave when the obviously fake moaning started again; there’s no way Richie could be that good.That little tramp just wanted to have her cake and eat it. Ignoring the sex noises, Vanessa goes back to Kate’s phone and tries to figure out the password. She had never paid attention to when Kate’s birthday was or any other important date that people usually used for passwords. Trying random combinations turned out to be pointless and not even Seth’s birthday worked. drumming her fingers on the counter top she has the bright idea to check the calendar in the kitchen. Circled in big red letters was in a few days times was Richie’s birthday. It had slipped her by even though Seth hadn't shut up about it for months, how he was going to do something nice for his brother for once. Vanessa had only pretended to listen to him, she doesn't give a shit about Richie’s birthday, but once she’s punched in the date Kate’s phone finally opens up for her. Without hesitating she goes into Kate’s texts messages and pulls up the conversation thread from Seth. Frustratingly all of them had been deleted, another piece of proof that something was going on between the two of them, but Vanessa had played this game before and she went into Kate’s deleted text folder. Similarly most of these had gone too but a few fragments of conversation still remained. 

 

**_Cool; I’ll wait down the street._ **

 

**I’ll be on the corner of West Rider, make sure nobody see’s you.**

 

**_I know what I’m doing Seth!_ **

 

**We almost got caught last time, you need to be more discreet.**

 

**_I can’t help it, I can’t wait to get waffles!_ **

 

**_Send me a picture!_ **

 

**Later, theres people here.**

 

**FYI your shirt and the condoms are still in my trunk.**

 

“You lying piece of shit!” Vanessa seethed as she slammed the phone down.

 

How could he?! And with her, of all people?!! Seth had strayed before, he’d even used the same dumb code “going to get waffles” when he was talking about screwing another girl! Vanessa had forgiven him in the past, as those girls were just faceless and meaningless. Some cheap, one night hookup whilst Seth was drunk and easily persuaded. But this? This is something else all together.

 

The sound of footsteps and giggling pulls her back to her senses and she ducks down behind the kitchen counter top before Kate and Richie go streaking past on their way to the bathroom. Vanessa holds her breath for what seems like an eternity before she hears the sound of the shower going and more loud giggling. That was close; she needs to be more prepared. She’s got a lot of evidence stacking up against Kate and Seth but she still feels like she needs more, so theres no chance that the pair of them can’t wriggle out of it. Richie clearly has no idea whats been going on between his brother and his girlfriend and Vanessa can’t wait to see the look on his face when she clues him in.

 

“I’ve drawn you a bath,” Vanessa says later that night after she and Seth have eaten dinner, “You’ve looked a little tense lately.”

 

She walks around to the back of Seth’s chair and starts to massage his neck, peeling the collar down to take a good look at those scratch marks. They're still there, bold as anything, and Vanessa must have let her anger run away with her as Seth is trying to pry her hands away.

 

“Jezz, that hurt!” he scolds as he rubs the back of his neck, “less with the manhandling next time!”

 

“Sorry,” Vanessa mutters as she rests her hands on his shoulders, “You want me to join you?”

 

In reality, Vanessa would much prefer to have Seth out of the way so she could have a proper look through his car, but he’s barely touched her in weeks and it’s making Vanessa’s brain ache knowing that Kate had been so close to him.

 

“Nah,” Seth says as he pushes her away, “Maybe next time.”

 

Vanessa is left standing there feeling like an idiot as he walks off to the bathroom and shuts the door. Fine. He’ll be begging for her forgiveness soon enough anyway. Once she’s sure Seth is settled in the tub, Vanessa takes his car keys out of his pocket and slips quietly out of the house. 

 

Seth doesn't have a sat nav and prefers to “wing it” whenever drive’s somewhere so Vanessa has no way of checking his movements so she climbs straight into the front seat. The only thing that Seth ever seemed to be able to keep clean and tidy was his beloved car. He was almost as devoted to the stupid hunk of junk as he was to Richie. Riche had won it in a poker game when he was seventeen but handed the keys over to Seth as his eyesight was so poor that he wasn't safe to be behind the wheel of a car. Suspiciously, Seth had had his car valeted twice in as many weeks; something he normally kept to a monthly basis, so Vanessa wasn’t expecting to find much. The glove box was almost empty and only had a map and Seth’s driving gloves inside. Vanessa slammed it shut and felt around underneath the seat but all she could find was a stray ten cent piece and a gum wrapper. Unperturbed, she clambered awkwardly into the back seat and continued her search.

 

Everything was in pristine condition back here as well but Vanessa’s keen eyes spot a single strand of long brown hair caught in the seatbelt and she carefully plucks it out and stares at it. An angry howl escapes her and she wants more than anything to smash Seth’s beloved car to pieces. Kate must have left this here on purpose to taunt her, knowing that Vanessa would see it and freak out! That way she could make out like it was Vanessa who was in the wrong for accusing Kate of something so heinous. Then it would be bye-bye Vanessa and that little tramp would have Seth all to herself and nobody would ever suspect a thing. Now she thinks about it, that must have been why Kate started all the fuss at the dinner party; she was already laying the ground work to make herself look like the victim and have both Gecko brothers fawn all over her. What a sick and twisted little cow she was! Well, Vanessa could see straight through her little game and it would take a lot more than a dumb little Preachers daughter to get rid of her!

 

She’s about to get out and look in the trunk when something falls out onto the floor from between the seats. It was a tiny scrap of red foil, like it had been ripped off the corner of something. Vanessa sat back and looked at it for a few moments; it seemed strangely familiar to her. Then it clicked; the condoms that Kate had had in her purse were red! This could easily have come from one of them. This time Vanessa really did let rip as she kicked and punched the seat in front of her. A furious scream bounced around the car as Vanessa continued to pound her fists into the hard leather.

 

“YOU FUCKING BITCH!!” she screamed as she almost ripped the head rest loose, “YOU FUCKING EVIL LITTLE BITCH!!”

 

Ten minutes later Vanessa is still breathing heavily, but no longer screaming, as she tries to collect herself before she heads back inside. Her eyeliner is smudged halfway down her cheek and her skin is red and blotchy; nothing a little touch up with some powder can’t fix. It’s almost scary how she can go from frantic to calm within a matter of minutes.

 

“This is gonna be the last time,” Vanessa tells herself calmly as she fixes herself up in the wing mirror, “That you do some shit like this to me Seth Gecko.”

 

Once she’s tided herself up, she collects the strand of hair and condom wrapper and tucks them safely inside a see through sandwich bag she had brought with her. Then she smooth’s down her clothes and exits the car. Vanessa is almost halfway back to the house when she realises she hasn’t checked the trunk. Buried beneath Seth’s gym bag, assorted junk for the bar and a spare tire was a bag containing a box of condoms and Kate’s shirt, the one she was wearing when Vanessa caught her leaving that house with Seth. Pulling it out, Vanesa casts a critical eye over it and finds a small white stain on the front; that dirty little slut. She then balls the bag up and stuffs it underneath her jumper as she sneaks back inside the house. Seth is still in the bathroom, she can hear him singing some stupid Johnny Cash song, and she hurries to back to their bedroom. Hidden underneath the bed is inconspicuous looking shoe box that she had gradually been filling with all the evidence she had found. There was no way she was going to risk Seth finding it all and destroying it before she was ready to confront him but she was becoming increasingly paranoid that Kate was already on to her. She would need to act soon if she was going to stand a chance of saving her marriage and getting Kate and Richie out of their lives for good. Once she’s added all her new finds to the box, she pushes it back under the bed and out of sight. 

 

Vanessa is halfway getting changed into her nightclothes when Seth comes up behind her and starts kissing her neck. It makes her feel smug, clearly Kate can’t compete with her and its like old times between them, as the fall onto the bed like a pair of animals.

 

The next morning Vanessa had come to the conclusion that she would take Seth back; he was stupid sometimes and easily persuaded by conniving little bitches who were just after his money. If she played her hand right, she might finally get that nutcase of a brother out of their lives for good as well. She’s still basking in the glow of last night when Seth’s phone goes off and he jumps out of bed and hastily starts getting ready.

 

“Where are you going?” Vanessa asks sleepily as she tries to pull him back into bed.

 

“Out,” Seth says brusquely as he pushes her hands away, ‘Shit I’m late!”

 

Then he’s out of the door before she can even get another sentence out. Vanessa was somewhat prepared for this and she quickly throws on some clothes, jumps is her car and tries to follow Seth. It ends up being a pointless exercise as she immediately gets stuck in traffic. Slamming her hand down on the horn in frustration, Vanessa backs up and decides to take a different route. She drives around for hours in the end, back to El Ray’s, to Eddies and anywhere else she can think off before she remembers the receipt for the dinner that Seth had taken Kate to before. It’s still tucked safely away in her purse and once she’s googled the name she discovers that its not all that far from where she is. Once she finds it, it takes her barely seconds to spot Seth’s car in the parking lot and as she drives past looking for a spot she sees Seth and Kate sat in the window seat, bold as anything! Vanessa is almost spitting with rage as the two of them laugh at each other as they eat their food. Vanessa almost smashes into the car in front of her as a red rage takes over her; she’d quite like to get out of her car, go into the restaurant and slap the shit out of the pair of them. Instead, she finds a place to park that allows her to remain hidden and still spy on her dick of a husband and that horrid little shrew he’s taken up with. It’s agony sitting there watching them so she takes her phone and snaps a few pictures to add to her evidence collection; there’s no way either of there going to wriggle out of this. The little witch is stuffing her face with those mozzarella sticks she loves so much and Vanessa cruelly hopes that they make her fat and ugly.  

 

After half an hour of Fat Kate fantasies, Vanessa can’t take it any more. She’s bitten her fingernails down to the quick and can barely sit still so she calls Seth on his mobile. From her vantage point she can see him take his phone out, look at it and shove it straight back in his pocket. Enraged, she calls repeatedly until Seth finally answers.

 

“What?” he sounds really annoyed which pisses Vanessa off; he’s the one thats sneaking around for fuck sake!

 

Vanessa strains her ears to hear anything incriminating in the background but all she can hear is the noise of the other dinners.

 

“What is it Vanessa?” Seth is asking her and she has to think quickly to come up with something.

 

“I just wondered,” Vanessa says as calmly as she can, “What you wanted for dinner.” 

 

“You’re cooking?” Seth asks in surprise.

 

“Yes” Vanessa snaps irritably

 

“Fine. Steak.”

 

“Where are you?” Vanessa cuts in quickly as she can feel that Seth’s patience is running thin.

 

“Wholesalers,” Seth grumbles, “I need stuff for the bar.”

 

Vanessa forces herself not to scream as she stares out of the window and right at her husband, who is most defiantly not at the wholesalers.

 

“What time,” she starts to say through gritted teeth but Seth has already hung up on her.

 

Vanessa stares at her phone for a few moments before she lets rip and hurls it agains the dashboard. 

 

“THAT FUCKING CHEATING PIG!!” she screams as she pounds her fist onto the seat next to her, “I KNEW IT!! I KNEW IT YOU DUMB LITTLE WHORE!!”

 

People outside are starting to stare at her so she tries to calm herself down; she doesn't want to risk being caught now. Its getting more and more difficult to keep a lid on her emotions with each piece of new information she finds out. After taking a few deep breaths she turns her attention back towards the dinner and catches Kate actually having the audacity to roll her eyes as Seth puts away his phone! They’re talking again and Vanessa wishes now more than ever that she could hear what they were saying. She had considered getting one of those recording devices and somehow attaching it to Seth’s clothes, but he would probably notice that.

 

“Little witch,” Vanessa hisses to herself as Kate leans in closer to talk to Seth, “That’s right, have a good old laugh at Vanessa.”

 

They’re probably talking about her right now, congratulating each other on how clever they think they’re being; she thinks bitterly as she watches Kate toss her stupid hair back over her shoulder and laugh at something Seth had said. Well the jokes on them Vanessa tells herself as she pulls out her phone and snaps a couple more pictures of the pair of them. There’s no way anybody could deny that Seth and Kate were having an affair; not with all the evidence she had gathered.

 

They talk for a bit longer and then Kate is pulling her phone out and showing Seth something on it which he seems very interested in judging by his reaction. Probably all those terrible naked pictures Kate took of herself; no man in their right mind would want to see them. Then Seth is handing Kate something, something small that she tucks away inside that stupid locket she wears. Before Vanessa can see anything else, the waitress gets in the way when she comes to give them their check. Vanessa takes that as her queue to leave and hastily exits the car park; just what exactly was hidden inside that locket?

 

Vanessa had decided to wait until the following night, whilst Seth was working the late shift at the bar, before she executed the next part of her plan. It was seven in the evening and thankfully it wasn't too cold, because Vanessa was currently hiding behind the trash cans round the back of Kate and Richie’s house. She hadn't yet been able to make her move into the main house, all though she had spotted that the window to the basement had been left open. It was small but probably big enough for her to fit through. Richie and Kate were in the kitchen making dinner together; Vanessa had snuck up to peek through the kitchen window earlier to spy on them. It was a sickening sight, almost as bad as watching them have sex, as both of them were making a ridiculous show of being all loved up whilst they helped each other cook. This was the type of shit that made Vanessa certain that Kate _must_ know that she was onto her and was trying to twist things about in her head. It was all just a ploy for Vanessa to start doubting the facts in front of her and make a show of herself again. As if she would fall for that ridiculous charade; Seth and her never acted like that and even as she stole another quick glance through the window they were kissing again. Vanessa had seen enough of that already so she retreated behind a large flower pot by the back door and waited in the dark. It seemed to take for ever for all the fake laughing to stop but finally the kitchen lights go off and Vanessa is able to crawl through the grass to the back porch, were she huddled down and waits for the living room lights go on. Squeezing herself through the open window was hard going, it was a very tight fit, but she managed to wriggle herself through and thankfully landed on a pile of old dust sheets. Her elbow was grazed and she had mud all over her clothes but nothing would stop her getting to the truth; she had to find out what was in that locket.

 

Four hours later and Vanessa was starting to think she might end up spending the night hiding out in Uncle Eddie’s old basement. Once or twice she had heard noise near the door and had pushed a pile of boxes of Eddie’s old clothes together to hide her from view. Every so often she would sneak up and put her ear to the door that led out into the kitchen, so she could keep on top of what was happening in the main house. She was almost nodding off when she heard Richie heading towards the bathroom. Seizing her chance, she quietly opened the door that led into the kitchen and froze; Kate standing right there, thankfully with her back to her. There was no time to head back the way she came so she sinks down on her hands and knees and keeps herself as low to the ground as she can. The noise form the TV serves as a good cover and as Kate set about making popcorn on the stove, she was completely oblivious to Vanessa scurrying past her. 

 

Vanessa makes it into the living room and climbs into the coat closet that had been moved in from the hallway. She’s barely shut the door when, only seconds later, Kate came waltzing back in, wearing sleep shorts and an overlarge t shirt. Then suddenly she stops, a handful of pop corn halfway to her lips, and stares at the empty living room.

 

“Babe?” she calls out as she looks around frowning and Vanessa clamps her hand over her mouth as Kate looks right at the closet.

 

“Yeah?” Richie calls out as he suddenly appears directly behind her and makes Kate jump, spilling some of her popcorn, “Sorry, here let me get that.”

 

“That’s weird,” Kate says as she shivers slightly and continues to stare at the wardrobe, “I was sure I saw you walk past the kitchen a minute ago.”

 

“You mean like a sensed presence?” Richie asks her as they head back over to the couch.

 

“A what?” Kate asks as she takes the popcorn bowl from him.

 

“Studies have a shown that we normally spend most of our time attending to and processing external, ambient stimuli from the physical world surrounding us,” Richie starts and Vanessa dies a little inside, he never shuts up when he starts with the science crap, “However, persistent exposure to stimuli that we are evolutionarily _unprepared_ to process, or a lack of change in our surroundings, may cause us to focus more _within_ ourselves, which most of us are much less experienced at doing.”

 

“But I’m not being exposed to what was it?” Kate queries as she cuddles up to him, “Stimuli from the physical world surrounding us?” 

 

“Well you were last night,” Richie says and Kate starts to laugh, “I’d say you were being very stimulated.”

 

“Smooth,” Kate says, “You know you could have just said ghost,” 

 

“I don't believe in ghosts. What people think are ghosts, are really just particles of HEY!” Richie yelps as Kate throws popcorn at his face.

 

“Enough talking,” she says as she pelts him with more popcorn, “Start the movie!”

 

After some more irritating giggling and play fighting, they eventually settle down to watch some ancient Sci Fi film that Vanessa remembers Seth watching about a million times. It seems to go on for hours and Vanessa is praying that they’ll both fall asleep soon; her legs have gone completely numb from being crouched down for so long.

 

“GET TO THE CHOPPA!!!”

 

Vanessa jolts awake and is momentarily confused about where the hell she is as a coat sleeve wraps itself around her face. It comes back to her quick enough when she realises the voice she heard was coming from that awful film Kate and Richie had been watching. Her legs are cramping and she’s starving hungry, but the pain will be worth it if she can finally see what Kate’s hiding in that locket. There wasn't any other rational way, not one that she could think of anyway, other then waiting until the dead of night and creeping into Kate’s bedroom whilst she slept. It’s been silent outside the closet for a while so Vanessa decides to risk it and open the door slightly. The TV is still on but its playing one of those twenty four hour game shows and there doesn't seem to be any movement from the couch. It’s agony trying to get her legs to move again after been in a crouched position for so long and she wobbles slightly as she creeps over to the back of the couch. They're both asleep; Vanessa wasn't sure at first because Richie doesn't make any noise when he sleeps, unlike Seth who snores like an elephant, and it was hard to tell in the semi darkness.

 

Kate is curled up with her head resting on Richie’s chest and she doesn't move when Vanessa looms over her and peers down. The silver chain gleams in the darkness but it annoyingly leads down into Kate’s night shirt. Vanessa thinks for a moment as to how she can get the necklace off with out Kate waking up. As gently as she can, she lifts the delicate chain and tries to pull it away from Kate’s neck. She doesn't get very far as Kate’s hair gets in the way and gets tangled up in it so Vanessa stops just as Kate’s eyelids start to flicker. What she really needs is for Kate to roll over but Richie’s arm is wrapped tightly around Kate’s waist and Vanessa had known Richie long enough to know that he’ll wake up as soon as she touches him. Maybe she could get Kate to move instead? It seems like a much better idea and she tugs the back of Kate’s hair just hard enough to hurt and succeeds in getting a murmur and a jolt out of the sleeping girl. She does it a second time, harder than the first, until Kate rolls over slightly and the pendant dangles free from underneath her shirt. Success! Vanessa quickly undoes the clasp and is about to open it when something starts to stir next to her.

 

“AGGGGHHHHH!”

 

It’s Kate, still sounding half asleep even though she’s screaming, and Vanessa doesn't want to end up being caught and risk never finding out what’s in the locket, so she darts around the couch and out of the living room. It’s still dark enough that Kate wouldn't have recognised her and she presses herself against the kitchen wall; her heart hammering in her chest. Richie is awake now and she can hear their frantic conversation;

 

“There was someone in here!!” Kate cries as the living room light goes on, “There was someone standing over me!”

 

“What?!” Richie cries, “Wait here, don’t move whilst I check.”

 

Vanessa doesn't wait to hear anymore and exits back the way she came and sprints all the way down to her car. Her breathing is coming out in short bursts as she slumps down into her seat; she can already see that all the lights have gone on inside the house. The silver pendant is still clenched tightly in her fist and she flicks on the overhead light as she finally pries the lock open to see whats inside. It’s got two pictures inside; one of the Fuller family and one of Kate and Richie. A huge, crushing wave of disappointment hits her as she looks down at it; she was certain that she had seen Kate put whatever Seth had given her inside it. Perhaps she had taken it out or maybe she knows that Vanessa suspects her? Yes, thats probably more likely. That little sneak is trying to cover her tracks before she’s caught out! Kate would be out on the street without either one of the gecko brothers to protect her and Vanessa would make sure that Daddy Fuller wouldn't want his pious little daughter back. 

 

Its still frustrating though, she had been desperate to know what Seth had given Kate and she’s about to toss the locket out of the window when something catches her eye; theres something behind the Fuller family picture. Vanessa tears the photo almost in two, such is her eagerness to see what lies behind it, and reveals a tiny scrap of folded paper. Her fingers tremble as she tries to unravel it without ripping it and holds it up to the light to see better. Vanessa’s throat tightens as she reads the series of numbers written in Seth’s untidy scrawl; it’s the code to his private office at El Rays. 

 

It’s late by the time she gets home; she’d driven round and round for hours trying to make sense of everything in her head. Seth was halfway through cooking something when she comes through the door.

 

“Hey,” he says as he glances up from his cooking, he doesn't even seem to think it strange that his wife is coming home at two in the morning, “I’m making pasta, you want some?”

 

“Sure,” Vanessa says as she sits down at the table. There’s a big crack in it from where she flipped it over during her first and last attempt at a dinner party. She watches Seth move about the kitchen as he sings badly to himself and she knows right then and there she wont ever let him go. Cheating she can forgive; even if it is with that sanctimonious little whore. She’s forgiven him for worse things in the past and she had thought long and hard about what her final move would be. Now that her head has cleared, Vanessa can now see that all this has actually turned into the perfect opportunity to get Richie out of Seth’s life for good. No more having to play second best or putting up with all the weird, creepy shit Richie does. Richie can barely even function as a normal person and it was a surprise to almost everyone that he’d finally convinced a girl to spend more than five seconds with him; he won’t forgive Seth for taking that a way from him. Once this is all out in the open and everyone can see what a conniving little sneak Kate really is, Vanessa and Seth can finally move on and start a fresh together. They could even move or go travelling; something that Richie’s need to have Seth at his beck and call twenty four seven had constantly prevented. As for Richie and Kate; Vanessa isn't really bothered about what becomes of their relationship, they can both go jump off a bridge for all she cares. She smiles happily to herself, safe in the knowledge that she finally has that last piece of leverage to keep Seth all to herself. 

 

“So its Richie’s birthday on Saturday,” Seth is saying to her as he sets a plate down in front of her, “I’m not saying you have to come but it would be nice to have all the family together.”

 

“Oh, I wouldn't miss it,” Vanessa says, smiling broadly at him as she sips her wine, “I wouldn't miss that for anything.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

It’s mid afternoon by the time Vanessa drives herself to Kate and Richie’s; Seth had refused to take her with him when he had left a few hours earlier. It was a poor excuse, some rubbish about him needing to pick up Richie’s birthday present and that she wouldn't fit in the car. Unless Seth was buying Richie an elephant then Vanessa didn't see what the big deal was either. The fact that the present was clearly a ruse to cover up something else just made her even madder; she had checked Seth’s bank statements and he hadn't made any big purchases in the last month. Richie was a spoilt little brat and Seth never scrimped out when it came to buying him stuff, even when it was ridiculous things, like books or some science thing that Richie just had to have. It had all seemed very convenient, considering Kate had called Seth at least three times that morning and every time Seth would leave the room to go and speak to her. That heartless little trollop was brazenly rubbing Vanessa’s face in the fact that she had Seth wrapped around her little finger. Not for long though, Vanessa mused as she gathered up all her evidence and placed it carefully into her handbag. 

 

The front door isn't locked and when Vanessa pushes it open and she’s greeted with the sound of Kate’s loud, shrill giggle coming from the kitchen. It sets her teeth on edge as the nose gets louder and louder as she slips in through the door; it doesn't look all that different from the last time she was here, all though the wardrobe she had hid in has been moved back into the hallway. The house is filled with the strong smell of something spicy cooking and Vanessa closes the door quietly behind her as she doesn't want to announcer her presence just yet.  Creeping up on people has become somewhat of a speciality of hers as she makes her way stealthily towards the kitchen but when she rounds the corner, she finds Seth and Kate laughing next to the kitchen counter. It’s almost like being slapped in the face, seeing the two of them in such proximity to each other after weeks of being a few paces behind as they carried out their sordid little affair. Kate’s hand is clutching Seth’s arm as she double up over laughing and Vanessa has sudden urge to rip that tiny hand of hers right off her body. Who the fuck does Kate think she is?! It’s then that she realises that that Captain Crazy himself, Richie, is nowhere in sight. Surely Kate and Seth haven't been alone together this whole time?! Isn’t this supposed to be Richie’s birthday party?  She clears her throat loudly and Seth and Kate don’t even bother to look guilty as they spot her standing there. Kate is still chuckling away to herself, her hand _still_ touching Seth, even as Vanessa approaches them. The little cretin is laughing at her, right in her face! 

 

“Hey babe,” Seth says as he looks up at her, not even bothering to move away from Kate, “You made it to the party base of operations!”

 

Vanessa grunts at him as she walks forward and stops suddenly as she takes in what Kate is wearing. It’s a just a knee length robe and a pair of stupid cartoon slippers. So that’s why Seth wanted to ditch her and get here early; he wanted to get in a quick fuck before Vanessa, his wife no less, turned up and spoiled his fun. How could he?! She can feel the vein in her temple throbbing as she tries to compose herself in front of the cheating pair, who are both looking at her weirdly. It must have been Kate that begged Seth to come over, probably right after learning about how good Seth had gotten it from Vanessa the other night. Jealous little bitch!

 

“Ness?” Seth asks her as he looks at her in concern, “Are you ok?”

 

“I’m fine,” she says as calmly as she can, “Traffic was just bad is all.”

 

Seth seems to buy this and resumes pouring a huge bag of cheese puffs into a bowl, leaving Kate and Vanessa in an uncomfortable silence. Vanessa isn't about to bend over backwards to be nice to Kate. After what she’s done, Kate’s lucky Vanessa didn't walk right up to her and knock all her perfect pearly white teeth out. It takes a lot of effort but she somehow manages to keep a lid on all her pent up rage; she has a plan for Kate and if she kicks off now then she won’t be to execute it to it’s fullest extent.

 

“Hi Vanessa,” Kate says and she even has the gaul to sound polite as she starts looking through the mountain of shopping bags that are on the dinning room table, “I’m glad you could make it.”

“Hi,” Vanessa says bluntly without looking at her, “Where’s Richie?”

 

She doesn't really care where Richie is, she just wants to know why these two are in the house alone. Richie’s so medicated he probably doesn't even know what day it is, let alone when his birthday is, so it doesn't really surprise her to find him absent. 

 

“Therapy session,” Seth informs her as he throws a couple of cheese puffs into his mouth, “I’m going to pick him up later. He’s doing this -“

 

“That’s great,” Vanessa cuts in. She doesn't want to hear, for what feels like the millionth time, about how well Richie is doing in his ridiculous therapy sessions. Seth had even tried to get _her_ involved when Richie had first come home, said it was a family issue or some rubbish.Vanessa had refused point blank. It was bad enough that Seth insisted on going to every single appointment and then badgering the therapist all day long about his brothers progress. Normal people don’t need stuff like that to function, they just get on with it.

 

“That seems strange,” she says suspiciously, “I thought you would have changed it so he wouldn't have to go on his birthday.”

 

“Consistency is the key,” Seth informs her, sounding like one of those stupid counselling books he had insisted on trying to read when Richie had first started coming home on the weekends.

 

“I didn't realise you cared so much Vanessa,” Kate mutters as she starts pulling out party decorations from a huge bag and Vanessa is sure she’s mocking her. Of course she doesn't care about Richie; she just doesn't like being made an idiot out of.

 

“Well you all normally just let Richie do whatever he wants,” she grinds out as Kate looks up at her, frowning, “Why should today be any different?”

 

Kate opens her mouth like she’s about to say something back to Vanessa, when Seth gets between them both.

 

“OK,” he says loudly to try as he stands between the two women and tries to defuse the situation, “Kate, tell us where you want all this stuff to go.”

 

Vanessa can tell by the look on Kate’s face that she’s still looking for an argument but ultimately, she decides against it. Good; Vanessa would wipe the floor with Kate if she tried come back at her with some ridiculous excuse about Richie not having everyone wrapped around his little finger. Maybe that’s why Kate set her sights on Seth; she’s probably grown bored of having to babysit Richie and sort out every one of his ridiculous emotional meltdowns. Seth might be a cheating son of a bitch but at least he’s not a complete lunatic like his brother.

 

“Let me just go get my list,” Kate says loftily, as she give’s Vanessa a very icy glare and heads out of the kitchen and into the living room. 

 

Vanessa watches her trail out of the room with smug satisfaction before she starts on her husband.

 

“You need to tell her to put some clothes on!” she hisses at Seth whilst Kate is still out of the room.

 

“What are you talking about?” Seth asks her with a frown as he helps himself to more cheese puffs.

 

“It’s inappropriate for her to be walking around half dressed,” Vanessa snaps, “There’s other people here besides her!”

 

Seth does a mini double take and he looks like he’s about to start laughing at her which riles Vanessa up even more.

 

“Inappropriate?” he scoffs as he leans in towards her, “Babe, she's wearing a bath robe and bunny slippers. That’s hardly a stripper look!”

 

Vanessa is about to retort that yes, Kate does look like a cheap stripper in that outfit, when the woman herself comes back into the kitchen holding a clip board and a pen. There’s a look of militance about her as she looks down at the list she’s written and starts reeling off jobs for them to do. It seems to take forever and Vanessa is already getting annoyed at the expectation that she’ll be hanging up birthday banners for her cheating husbands psychotic brother. Seth seems unperturbed by this and even starts laughing as Kate gives him a full run down of to properly blow up a balloon. 

 

“Wow you’re really taking this whole party planning thing seriously aren’t you princess?” he teases her but Kate doesn't rise to the bait.

 

 

“Ok,” she says seriously as she addresses them both and ignores Seth’s giggling, “I’ve mapped out where I want everything to go; just remember to colour coordinate when you hang stuff up.” 

 

She holds the clip board up to show them a very detailed diagram of the kitchen and living room; each decoration marked in a specific place. On closer inspection, Kate has even drawn little stick figures at the table to show where everyone is going to sit. Unsurprisingly, in Vanessa’s mind, Kate has sat herself opposite Seth. This is probably so she play footsie with him under the table or some other sick little fantasy. Nobody else seems to notice this and Seth is more interested in the amount of effort Kate has gone to with her decorating plan.

 

“You drew a diagram?” he queries as he snatches the piece of paper off her and gives it a closer look, “Man, you’ve been spending too much time with Richie. You need to come hang out with me for a bit.”

 

Vanessa almost breaks her own teeth as her jaw clenches tightly together; its like they're rubbing their affair right in her face!! 

 

“I just want it to look nice!” Kate asserts as she plucks the piece of paper out of his hands and smoothes it out on the table, “Seth, I need to hang the banners up over here,” she tells him as she points to the area above the dining table, “And then you can help me with the balloons.”

 

“Which one?” Seth jibed as he starts digging through one of the bags on the table, “You brought like a million of the things.”

 

“If you looked at the diagram like I told you to,” Kate scolds as she shoves he clipboard under his nose, “Then you would know that I already written that down!”

 

“Ok, Ok!” Seth retorts as he takes the clipboard out of her hands, “I’ll stick to the fricking diagram if it means that much to you!”

 

“Thank you!” Kate says sarcastically before she turns to Vanessa nervously, “Would you… um… like to help Vanessa? I’ve written everything down so it’s easy to know where stuff goes.”

 

She looks so hopeful, like Vanessa is suddenly going to be ok with her sleeping with her husband. The rage is starting to burn up inside her stomach and she ends up just shaking her head stiffly until Kate gives up and turns back to Seth.

 

“Were’s that confetti canon thing you got?” Seth asks her as he starts tipping out all the bags until he finds what he’s looking for, “Cool, I am so setting this off in Richie’s face!”

 

“No,” Kate tells him as she pulls it out of his hands and hides it away in the kitchen cupboard, “You’re not. What you’re going to do is get that step ladder out and start hanging up the Happy Birthday banner.”

 

“Ok Miss Bossy,” Seth sighs as he picks up the banner and starts to unfurl it, “Do you boss Richie around like this too? Actually don’t answer that, I don’t want to know what you two get up to behind closed doors.”

 

“You are such a child,” Kate mutters as she consults her diagram whilst sorting through the decorations.

 

Seth just snorts at her as he goes to the pantry and pulls out the stepladder. Vanessa is still standing there and feeling more and more like an imposter by the minute. It was just like Kate to make Seth’s own wife have to stand there and watch whilst she flirted with him; and on top of that to force her to hang up a bunch of tacky decorations! 

 

“Come on Vanessa,” Seth chided as he shoves a bunch of balloons into her hands, “You’re supposed to be helping.”

 

Half an hour later and the kitchen and living room resembles a kids birthday party and they're only halfway done; there’s balloons, streamers and all manner of other of bits of crap hanging up. Kate appeared to have gone with a blue theme, “It’s Richie’s favourite colour!”, and now the whole of the downstairs looks like some weird underwater cave. She’s even got party hats, paper plates and a massively oversized balloon with Richie’s name on it. Vanessa didn’t really do much in the way of helping, something that clearly hadn't gone unnoticed by Kate. as she heads back into the kitchen to sort the food out.

 

“Do you want to help me with the food instead?” Kate asks her as she walks past her on her way to the fridge, “Or there’s more decorations to hang up if you’d rather do that.” 

 

“There’s more?” Vanessa asks as she looks around at sea of balloons that are already taking up half the kitchen.

 

 

“Yeah,” Seth jests as he starts hanging up another Happy Birthday banner, “Kate decided to buy up half of WallMart.”

 

“Oh shut up,” Kate says as she throws a cheese puff at him, “Ok, I might have gone a _little_ overboard.”

 

“A little bit?” Seth asks as he jumps down off the step ladder, grabs a handful of cheese puffs and stuffs them into his mouth.

 

“Stop eating all the food!” Kate scolds, as he swats his hand away as he goes in for another handful, “There won’t be any left for Richie at this rate!”

 

“Richie doesn't even like cheese puffs,” Seth tells her as he sneaks another one out of the bowl, “Say’s they're too cheesy.”

 

“How can a cheese puff be to cheesy?” Kate ponders.

 

“I dunno, this is Richie we’re talking about,” Seth shrugs, “There’s probably some scientific reasoning behind it.”

 

They continue to bicker back and forth about the fucking cheese puffs and Vanessa is almost biting her tongue off with the inanity of it all. Nothing Richie ever says makes any sense so she doesn't see why they’re so surprised.

 

“Richie better go to all this effort for me when its my birthday,” Seth sighs as he goes back to hanging up another one of Kate’s banners, “If he doesn't get me at least one ballon I’m disowning him.”

 

“Don’t worry, I’ve got you all sorted for next year, “ Kate informs him as she ties some of the wayward balloons together, “Richie told me all about Texas Ranger Seth.”

 

“Hey!” Seth retorted as he stopped what he was doing and turns to look at Kate, “That was back when I was eight! If you want to throw me a party, do one that involves copious amounts of liquor.” 

 

“Dually noted,” Kate replies as she starts unfolding some weird piñata looking thing and hanging it above the doorway, “You think Richie will like it?”

 

“Sure,” Seth says, “Either that or you’ll give him seizure with all this brightly coloured crap!” 

 

To Vanessa’s extreme pleasure, Kate’s smile falters a little bit and she looks around uncertainly at the rest of her decorations. That’ll teach you to be a sneaky little cheat Vanessa muses to herself. It would serve Kate right for Richie to hate his own stupid birthday party, which is clearly only being made such a big deal out of because Seth and Kate feel guilty about their sordid little affair. However, her joy is quickly shut down when Seth jumps down off the ladder and pulls Kate into a tight hug.

 

“Oh come on, don’t give me the pouty face Princess!” Seth laughs as he pats the top of her head, “Trust me, Richie will love it.”

 

“You sure?” Kate asks him worriedly as she looks up at him, “I don’t want to overwhelm him.”

 

Whatever Seth was about to say to her in return is cut short by Vanessa barging up to them and physically pulling them apart; her face livid. It’s one thing to have to stand there and watch them try and pretend they’re not flirting with each other, but to have them actually rub their affair in her face like this is another thing all together.

 

“Ness?” Seth says as Vanessa pushes Kate even further out of the way, “What are you doing?”

 

Shit; she still wants to announce the affair on her terms, and with Richie present, so they can’t wriggle out of it and accuse her of making it all up. Kate has shrugged her off and is looking between Seth and Vanessa in confusion. 

 

“Shouldn't you be getting on with the decorating?” Vanessa says to the pair of them as she tries to make her voice sound like she actually cares, “All this standing around isn't going to get it done is it?”

 

“Yeah, your right; come on Kate,” Seth agrees as he clambers back up the ladder and Vanessa breaths a sigh of relief, “What else have you got in that diagram of yours?”

 

Kate is still watching her suspiciously but Vanessa makes a big show of pulling out some more of the hideous decorations and asking where Kate wants them hung up.

 

“Along the counter tops if you don't mind,” Kate tells her, all though she still doesn't look entirely convinced by Vanessa’s sudden need to help, “Seth, you can start putting all the food I made into the fridge.”

 

Vanessa moves away and begins hanging the stuff up, aware that Kate is watching her carefully out of the corner of her eye. She had almost given herself away a moment ago and she needs to keep a grip on herself; if Kate manages to weasel her way out of this without any repercussions then all of Vanessa’s hard work will be ruined. Behind her, Seth has started to make room in the fridge for all of the vile looking things Kate had been cooking. 

 

 

“Kate,” he says seriously, as he pulls open the fridge, “We have a problem.”

 

“What?!” Kate frets as she comes hurrying past Vanessa and back into the kitchen, “What’s wrong? Is it the food? I was sure I made enough!”

 

“The fridge,” Seth says as he points at it, “There’s no beer in it.”

 

“That’s because we’re not having beer,” Kate sighs as she pulls him to one side and starts rummaging around in the fridge, “ We’re having punch.”

 

“Punch?” Seth repeats as he frowns at her, “What the fuck is punch?”

 

“This,” Kate informs him as she hold up a jug of brightly coloured looking liquid, “It’s fancy fruit juice.”

 

“Kate, you can’t have a party without beer,” Seth argues as he takes the jug from her and shoves it back in the fridge, “That’s like having Burt without Ernie.”

 

He continues to dig around the back of the fridge, like it’s the doorway to Narnia and he’s going to find some beer stashed behind the lamppost. 

 

“We are not having beer,” Kate tells him sternly, her hands on her hips, “Besides Richie doesn't drink a lot and I… well… after last time…”

 

She trails off awkwardly at the last bit and Vanessa scowls at her; she should have gotten drunk just to spite Kate. Then Kate would know it felt for someone to drink themselves into oblivion and ruin all your hard work.

 

“You mean we’re not going to get a repeat of Vegas for a third time?” Seth teases her and Kate’s face flushes bright red, “I can give you a leg up on that table if you want to show off your dance skills again.”

 

“What happened in Vegas?” Vanessa demands instantly as Kate’s face goes even redder.

 

“Nothing,” Kate says quickly just as Seth starts to laugh, “Now can we please get on with the decorating?”

 

Seth had never told Vanessa what had happened during that Vegas weekend, no matter how much she nagged or begged him to. It was a great source of annoyance to her because Richie, Kate and Seth had all these inside jokes about it and would often fall about laughing whenever it was mentioned. To make matters worse Vanessa hadn't even known that Seth had gone away; they had been on a “break” at the time and she had to be informed by Uncle Eddie that Seth had gone off to Vegas with Richie and Kate. She could possible see the reasoning behind Richie going, for some unfathomable reason Seth seemed to enjoy his brothers company, but Kate? Why did that little troll have to go? It’s starting to clunk together in her head as she starts to realise that that’s when Kate had set her sights on Seth. The Vegas trip was almost two years ago but Kate could easily have been playing the long game, getting Seth on his own out there would have given her the perfect opportunity to get him to start noticing her. Vanessa had been through Seth’s phone when they had got back together and she could only find one photo of the Vegas trips; the three of them standing outside the Bellagio whilst the fountains went off behind them. It had struck her as odd back then that there was only one picture of the entire trip and now she racks her memory it’s what Kate was wearing that had initially aroused her suspicions. Kate’s usual look was jeans and a t shirt or those horrid little cotton sun dresses she was always wearing when it got hot; basically what you’s expect from a wholesome little church mouse. The dress Kate had on in the Vegas picture was a skin tight green number and Vanessa had remembered laughing at the time at what an idiot the other girl looked. Outfits like that were more Vanessa’s area expertise, Seth was always appreciative of seeing a bit of extra skin, and clearly Kate had been taking notes.

 

“Ok,” Seth concedes, as he holds his hands up in mock surrender whilst Kate glares at him, “No beer, no Vegas. Got it.”

 

“Could you please make yourself useful instead of teasing me?” Kate pleads as she starts putting the food away herself, “I can do it myself if you’re just going to be a nuisance.”

 

Seth looks her over carefully for a minute or two before he stops her from picking up another plate of food and turns her back towards him.

 

“All right,” he tells her sternly as he folds his arms and looks her dead in the eye, “Out with it. What’s got your panties all in a bunch?”

 

“Nothing,” Kate grumbles as she tries to free herself so she can go back to sorting out the food.

 

“It ain’t nothing princess,” Seth argues as he blocks her path back to the fridge, “I’m not going to stop bugging you until you tell me.”

 

“It’s just…” Kate begins and then it all comes pouring out of her mouth,“What if its too much, or he doesn't like it, or I picked the wrong theme, or it upsets him because it reminds him of how horrible his birthdays were as a kid? Uncle Eddie isn't here anymore and I made his nachos, what if I should have done something else?”

 

It all comes out very fast and frantically and Vanessa barely even caught half of what Kate was wittering on about. Who cares if Richie hates it? He should be grateful he’s getting anything at all considering how much time and effort he takes up just on a regular day. All this nonsense about Kate wanting it to be perfect for him is clearly a case of her feeling bad about her secret sex sessions with Seth.

 

“Wow,” Seth says after a while as he looks at her, “Thats a lot of thoughts for someone with such a small head.”

 

“I do not have a small head!” Kate bristles, almost back to her old self aside from the tears that had been threatening to spill down her cheeks.

 

“You want to know what I think?” Seth asks her seriously as Kate wipes her sleeve across her eyes and nods, “Firstly it is too much, it looks like a weird aquarium in here, secondly Richie is King of all things weird so he will love it, thirdly nobody has ever done anything like this for Richie ever so trust me when I tell you that he’ll really appreciate all the effort you went to for him. If anything you’re making me, his older and much more cool bother, look like an asshole because the most I ever did for him was get him so wasted on his twenty first birthday that he vomited all over himself.” 

 

“You sure?” Kate asks him, her voice still wobbling slightly, “You’re sure he’ll like it.”

 

“Absolutely,” Seth confirmed as he rubs her arm and Vanessa resits the urge to punch him, “Now are we good?”

“Yeah,” Kate says, beaming at him, “We’re good.”

 

Seth holds his fist out to her and she bumps it with her own and Vanessa is strongly reminded of that stupid handshake that he does with Richie.

 

“Right now thats settled, on to the more important question of the day; why aren't you dressed yet?” Seth asks as he starts to put the step ladder away, “You said to be here by four, did you just roll out of bed five minutes before I got here?”

 

“I was busy,” Kate says promptly as she fusses around in the fridge, “I’ll sort myself out whilst you go and pick Richie up.”

 

Busy my ass Vanessa thinks as she starts to shred the banner she had hung up around the counter top into tiny pieces. 

 

“Oh yeah,” Seth says as he grins roguishly at her, “Were you and the birthday boy having a little afternoon delight?”

 

Kate just rolls her eyes at him but inside Vanessa is seething; now they're both making fun of her! Of course Kate isn't sleeping with Richie when she has Seth at her beck and call every five minutes.

 

“Seth,” she snaps as her fist closes around the shredded paper in her hand, “Don’t ask stuff like that. It’s disgusting!”

 

“Oh don't be ridiculous!” Seth says in surprise as he waves off her concerns, “I’m just checking incase we have to bail out early because these two lovebirds are trying to get down to business before we’ve even cut the cake!”

 

Maybe that’s how this all started Vanessa thinks wildly; maybe Seth's moaning about how they weren't having sex as much and Kate used it as opportunity to try and steal Seth from her. For a so called virgin, Kate’s not exactly backwards going forwards when it comes to talking about her sex life.

 

“For your information,” Kate informs them as she pulls something out of the fridge and sets it on the counter top, “We had sex this morning, so you’re all set to be in charge of party cleanup duty afterwards.”

 

You mean you had sex with my husband this morning you little witch, Vanessa seethes to herself. She pulls Seth roughly to one side as Kate clatters about in the kitchen looking for some cutlery.

 

“Why do you keep asking her stuff about her sex life?” she hisses at him, “That’s your brother she’s talking about sleeping with; it’s gross!”

 

“Oh for God sake,” Seth grumbles as he pushes past her to the kitchen counter top, “It’s just a joke!”

 

“Well it’s not very funny!” Vanessa fires back at him as she sits down on one the kitchen stools.

 

Seth just rolls his eyes at her and pulls the foil off whatever it was that Kate had taken out of the fridge. It turns out to be a huge oddly shaped pink thing and Seth stares down at in horror.

 

“WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS THING?” he exclaims as he pulls the foil all the way off, “Kate, what the hell did you bake?!”

 

“What?” Kate asks as she comes over and looks down at the weird cake-looking thing, “That’s just Richie’s birthday cake.”

 

She looks completely unconcerned whilst Seth is still staring at her baked goods with abject horror on his face.

 

“You made him a penis cake?!” he exclaims as he goes round to stand behind Kate to get a better look at the cake, “Jesus Christ Kate!”

 

Even Vanessa agrees that it does, in fact, look like a penis and she’s already giving it the once over to see if it resembles Seth in any way. She wouldn't put it past Kate to pull a stunt like that.

 

“No! I made him a Sour worm cake!” Kate yells as she elbows Seth out of the way and points to a lumpy bit at the top, “Look; that’s the head and this bits the tail!”

 

“Yeah, still looks like a dick to me. Kate, that literally looks like someone’s nut sack!” Seth says as he gestures to what’s supposed to be the worms head, “The fact that you’ve used pink icing isn’t helping much either.”

 

“Only you would immediately assume that it looks like a penis!” Kate snaps as she bats his hands away and glares at him, “Besides, how many dicks have you seen that look like this?”

 

“I’ve seen enough of my own to know what one looks like,” Seth shoots back at her before adding, “You are not feeding my brother some other dudes dick cake!’

 

“For the last time,” Kate informs him as her voice begins to rise and her face turns red, “It’s not a dick; it’s a sour worm!’

 

“Oh god,” Seth gags, as he ignores her outburst and stares more intently at the cake, “This isn't supposed to be a portrayal of _Richie’s_ junk is it? Cus if it is, I ain’t eating it.”

 

“IT’S A SOUR WORM!” Kate roars at him and Vanessa is getting more and more irritated by the minute.

 

“You keep telling yourself that Princess,” Seth says, in a very patronising tone, as he pats her on the arm.

 

Kate shrugs him off and turns back to her cake; chewing her bottom lip as she tries to decide what to do about it.

 

“Well, maybe if I put some glitter on it…” she mutters, as she digs around in the kitchen draws and finds some edible purple glitter and sprinkles some on, “There, that looks better…doesn’t it?’

 

“Great,” Seth deadpans, “Now you've turned it into a dildo.”

 

“How would you even know what a dildo looks like,” Kate demands irritably as she tries to distribute the glitter more evenly, “It’s clearly not a dildo.”

 

“How do _you_ know what a dildo looks like?” Seth asks her as his eyes light up with mirth, “Miss Churchy? Just what exactly do you and Richie get up to on an evening eh? Judging by the that thing, you’re not playing monopoly!”

 

“Oh shut up,” Kate bickers back at him as she covers the cake back up and puts it in the fridge.

 

“Why don’t you both shut up,” Vanessa snarls suddenly and they both stop and stare at her.

 

“I mean,” she tries again in a more conversational tone, “It’s just a cake.”

 

Seth gives her a funny look again and she tries to smile at him but it comes out as more of a grimace. It’s getting harder and harder to be civil around the pair of them and she’s just itching to throw something hard and heavy straight at Kate’s head.

 

“And it’s the only cake we’ve got so It’ll just have to do, regardless of whether or not it looks like a penis,” Kate says briskly as she slams the fridge door shut, “Seth, now you’ve stopped messing around can you shift all the party bags off the table. I’ll set it once i’ve finished getting dressed.

 

“Aye aye Captain,” Seth says as he salutes her and gets to work, leaving Vanessa feeling very pissed off. Seth hadn't helped once when she had had her own dinner party and that was much more important than Richie’s stupid birthday. Why is he suddenly bending over backwards to help Kate? Probably because Kate will spread her legs easily enough for him Vanessa thinks cruelly. She watches Kate fuss over the decorations again, bending over so half her ass was on display in that short robe. It’s really quite embarrassing the lengths that horrid little dwarf will go to to get Seth’s attention.

 

“Come on Vanessa,” Seth says irritably as he shoves a load of bags into her arms, ‘We need to get this done before I pick up Richie.”

 

Vanessa glares at him as she snatches the bags off him and stomps off to the hallway and dumps them in the living room. She’s almost halfway back to the kitchen when she hears her name being mentioned.

 

“… to Vanessa, please!”

 

Vanessa flattens herself against the wall, her breath caught in her throat, and listens in on the conversation.

 

“I don’t know why you even invited her,” Kate is saying in hushed tones.

 

“Just be nice, it’s just for one night,” Seth is practically begging her.

 

It’s good to know that Kate obviously feels threatened by her presence, as well she should do, but what does Seth mean by it being just for one night? Surely the little tramp can go one day with out trying to sleep with her husband? Vanessa storms back into the room just as Seth and Kate are breaking apart from their huddle.

 

“You ok Ness?” Seth asks her as he shifts more bags off the table, “You look weird.”

 

“I’m fine,” Vanessa says through clenched teeth; she needs to stick to her plan, as insuferable as it is to wait until Richie is back.

 

Seth just shrugs goes back to sorting out whatever’s left of Kate’s Walmart purchases; it really did seem like she had brought two ton of crap.

 

“I’ll stick this in my car,” Seth tells Kate, as she finishes off cleaning the table, “Don’t want Richie to see them when he comes in.”

 

Kate nods at him but then quickly lunges forward as Seth goes to pick up a fancy looking black carrier bag.

 

“Not that one,” she says quickly as Seth looks at her in confusion, “It’s… err… private,”

 

“What do you mean private?” he questions, as he snatches up the bag up before Kate can stop him, “You’ve not got a dildo in here have you?”

 

He shakes the bag teasingly in her face but pulls it back quickly as Kate tries to grab it off him.

 

“No!” Kate says indignantly as she once again attempts to take the bag from him, “It’s nothing that concerns you, now hand it over!”

 

She’s got her hands on her hips and her eyes are flashing dangerously but Seth just laughs at her and holds the bag above her head, making her jump up for it.

 

“What have you got in here?” Seth teases her, as he holds the bag just out of her reach, “King Kong?”

 

“Just girls stuff,” Kate says as she finally manages to pry it out of his hand and Vanessa notices her cheeks go a little pink, “Now stop messing around and help me!” 

 

Seth lets out a bark of laughter as she tucks the bag carefully out of his reach before he gathers up the rest of the stuff; clearly whatever was in that bag, it was something that they didn't want her to see. Vanessa makes a mental note to take a look and see what they were hiding as soon as Kate was safely out of the way.

 

“Seth,” Kate says suddenly as she stops counting out the cutlery, “Its almost five thirty!”

 

“Shit, I better get going,” Seth cursed as he starts pulling his coat on, “Richie’ll be thinking I forgot about him.”

 

Imagine that, Vanessa thinks to herself as she watches Seth dash about in a hurry. 

 

“Now,” he says seriously as he stand in front of Kate and Vanessa and pulls his car keys out, “Are you two girls going to be ok if I leave you alone? I don’t want any more hair pulling going on.”

 

Vanessa hand goes instantly to the small patch of hair that still hasn't grown back properly on the side of her head. Next time she’ll make sure to rip out a few handfuls of Kate’s long mane of brown hair.

 

“We’ll be fine Seth,” Kate says without looking up as she sets the table, “Go on or you'll be late to pick him up.”

 

He’s almost out the door when Vanessa pulls him into a fierce, almost bone crushing hug. Half of her had done it to see the look on Kate’s face but the other girl pretended she was busy with her table setting, jealous no doubt of how Vanessa could still pull Seth freely to her. The second reason was that she was determined to find out what had been going on before she had arrived. She inhales the scent of Seth’s neck but can find no trace of the musky hint of sex or anything else for that matter. He just smells clean; too clean.

 

“Ness?” Seth grunts as he tries to pull free, “I kind of need you to let go now. Richie will be waiting.”

 

Reluctantly she lets him and tries to kiss him but Seth has already broken free and is heading towards the door. He yells back at them to be good whilst he’s gone and then disappears out to his car. As soon as the front door closes behind Seth, an awkward silence decends on the two women and the air is thick with tension. She could do anything right now, Vanessa thinks to herself, confront the sneaky little cheat straight out, slap her round the face or rip that long brown hair straight out of her head. She’s still debating what to do when Kate clears her throat and puts down the cutlery she’s holding.

 

“Vanessa,” she says suddenly, “I just want to say that I’m sorry for what happened at your dinner party. You know, pulling out your hair and punching you in the face. But I’d really like it if we could put all that behind us and get along. I know it would mean a lot to Seth as well. How about you and I start a fresh?”

 

She’s looking at Vanessa with those ridiculous big eyes of hers, like a puppy waiting to be kicked, and once again trying to make Vanessa look like the bad person. How Seth was stupid enough to fall for this act she’ll never know. 

 

“Thank you,” Vanessa eventually manages to say, “for admitting it was all your fault.”

 

“That’s not really,” Kate begins, frowning at her, but Vanessa interrupts her before she gets to spout out whatever lie she was thinking up. Everything that went wrong at Vanessa’s dinner party was either Kate or Richie’s fault, and nothing will convince her otherwise.

 

“Shouldn’t you be getting dressed now?” she asks, she can’t really stand the sight of Kate for much longer.

 

“Oh shoot,” Kate frets as she throws down the napkins she had been folding, “I won’t be too long, you know where everything is if you need anything.”

 

Then she scuttles off upstairs; her stupid long hair fanning out behind her as she goes. Once she’s sure Kate’s gone, Vanessa takes the punch out of the fridge and spits in it; that’ll teach them to do the dirty on her, she thinks smugly as she puts it back in place. The noise of the shower can be heard over head and Vanessa takes the opportunity to sneak a quick look upstairs. Just because she hadn't smelt anything on Seth doesn't mean that nothing happened before she arrived; Seth and Kate had been alone for hours and could easily have cleaned up after their sordid little sex session. The spare bedroom is to her left so Vanessa decides check their first, perhaps Kate wasn't stupid enough to cheat on Richie in her own bed. She tries the handle but the door won’t budge. Vanessa tries again but nothing will force the door open; it’s been locked! Never in her life has she known for any of the rooms in Eddie’s house to be locked, she found that out the hard way when she accidentally walked in on Uncle Eddie whilst he was on the toilet. Kicking it in frustration, she stomps over to Kate and Richie’s bedroom and slips inside. 

 

**_“Bring a drink of water Leroy,”_ **

**_“Bring a drink of water, no,”_ **

**_“If I could get to the mercy man,”_ **

**_“He’d give me some I know,”_ **

 

 

She can hear Kate singing some awful country song to herself in the en suite shower; it sounded like two cats being swung around together in a bag in Vanessa’s opinion. At least it will give her a heads up for when Kate is finished washing her hair; she doesn't want any more close calls.

 

“ ** _I got a gal in Vicksburg,”_**

**_“Bertha is her name,”_ **

**_“Wish I’s tied to Bertha,”_ **

**_“Instead of this ball and chain,”_ **

 

Vanessa stops midway through her search of Kate’s underwear draw, which is becoming something of a habit, as something about the song catches her attention.

 

**_“I’m goin’ to Memphis, that’s right Lord, yeah,”_ **

 

“THAT LITTLE WITCH!” Vanessa screeches; it was the same fucking song that Seth had been singing a couple of days ago!

 

“I am gonna get you!” Vanessa snarls as she shakes her fist at the closed bathroom door, “Just you wait you little bitch, just you wait and see if I don’t!”

 

It takes all of her remaining effort to turn away and go back to what she was doing; calling Kate out whilst she was naked in the shower would just make her look like a crazy person! She needs to be calm and hold out so she can cause the maximum impact; once she’s done Seth will wish he had never even met Kate Fuller. Slamming the draw shut, she snatches up the bin next to the bedside table and starts to dig through it. Halfway to the bottom, and balled up in a bit of tissue, she finds condom. Inspecting it closely, Vanessa can see it’s recently been used _and_ is by the same brand that she had found in Seth’s car. Wrapping her prize back up in the tissue, she stuffs it into her back pocket. All that rubbish Kate was saying about her and Richie having sex this morning was just a cover up! Well it didn't work; Vanessa was far too clever for Kate’s little mind games. She’s about to go hunting through the bed sheets to see if she can find anything else when Kate’s awful caterwauling finishes and the water stops running. Pushing the bin back out of sight, Vanessa wastes no time in running back down stairs and into the kitchen. 

 

A few minutes later she hears the sound of a hairdryer going off, giving her at least ten more minutes of uninterrupted detective time. Wandering around the kitchen she doesn't really find anything of interest and there isn't much there aside from all the mess Kate has made with her cooking. It would be such a shame, Vanessa thinks to herself, if all this lovely food got ruined. There’s a rack full of various spices on the wall by the fridge and she hunts around until she finds one labeled “Extra Hot Chilli Powder’. Vanessa had intended to add a little something extra to Kate’s food but then her eyes land on the fancy black bag that Kate had tucked away out of sight behind the kitchen counter. Abandoning the chilli power for now, Vanessa snatches up the bag and riffles through it. Inside is a pair of dark green silk stockings, matching garter belt and what looks like two lacy triangles masquerading as a bra. There’s also a pair of panties as well, just as tiny as the other pair Vanessa found. She stuffs everything back in the bag when she notices the receipt crumpled up at the bottom and picks it up; she wanted to know when this little shopping trip had occurred to see if it matched up with when Seth said he was working.  Disappointingly the date doesn't match any of Seth’s “work” visits and she's about to put it back when the her eyes fall on the payment details; it’s the last few numbers of Seth’s credit card. Vanessa stands there in total shock as she stares at the little black numbers; he's buying her fucking underwear now? Trashy stuff as well, like the common little hooker she is! Enraged, Vanessa grabs the scissors off the table and frantically starts tearing holes into the expensive material. 

 

“Little bitch,” she sneers as she shreds the silk stockings into pieces, “That’ll teach you!”

 

There’s the sound of a door shutting and footsteps on the stairs and Vanessa hastily stuffs the ruined bits of material back into the carrier bag and kicks it back in place. She can’t be caught out now, it’s what Kate would expect her to do, to slip up before she can get a chance to prove to everyone that Kate is not the nice little country girl everyone thinks she is.

 

She’s still got the scissors in her hand when Kate walks back into the kitchen, her long hair perfectly blowdried and kink free. It wouldn't take much to slice up that wholesome face, Vanessa thinks as her grip on the scissors tightens. Seth wouldn't even give Kate a second glance if her face was all carved up; it would serve the little whore right too.

 

“Can I have the scissors please?” Kate is asking her, her hand stretched out towards her.

 

It would be so easy to say Kate had gone insane and attacked her, then Vanessa could claim self defence self and leave the little retch to rot in a prison cell. The police would be sure to believe her once she had proved to them that Kate was sleeping with her husband. It had worked for the chick in Gone Girl after all.

 

“Vanessa?” Kate asks again as she waits for her to hand over the scissors.

 

She must look pretty manic because Kate is giving her a weird look, so she shoves the scissors into the other girls outstretched hand and tries to play nice. Thinking about it logically, if she attacks Kate now then she’ll never be able to get Seth to admit that he had cheated on her.

 

“Who is even coming to this party anyway?” she asks disinterestedly as Kate looks up from the pieces of sellotape she’s cutting up, “I thought Richie didn't have any friends?”

 

It would be good to know what type of audience she would have when she brought Kate and Seth’s affair out into the open. Vanessa has never met any of the weirdos that Richie pretends are his friends; half of them are probably made up anyway. 

 

“Today is just for family,” Kate informs her before adding in a more brusk tone, “And he does have _friends_. We’re all going bowling on Saturday night. You can come if you want.”

 

Hmmm so you can make a fool out of me again? Vanessa isn't that stupid and besides, Kate perfect little family will be in tatters by then anyway so it’s best not to commit to something that isn't even going to happen.

 

“No thank you,” she replies as her eyes dart about to see if there was anything she had missed in her previous search.

 

“Suit yourself,” Kate sighs as she heads back into the kitchen and sets about making some vile looking mush thing .

 

“What is that stuff?” She asks as Kate starts mashing up some green stuff with tomato in it.

 

“Guacamole,” Kate replies happily as she holds up the bowl, “Eddie always used to make homemade Nacho’s on the boys birthday so I thought I’d carry on the tradition. I made it all from scratch my self.”

 

Well aren't you the perfect little housewife Vanessa thinks as Kate goes back to her weird green goop. There’s bowls of chillies, granted cheese, sour cream and some home made salsa all arranged in little pots ready to go on the table. It would actually look quite nice if anyone other than that evil little dwarf had made it. Vanessa never knew that Eddie made Seth and Richie Nacho’s on their birthday so Kate is clearly lying. Granted, she never let Seth go over to Eddie’s on his birthday because, as his wife, it was her day to spoil him. Eddie was only his Uncle, and a fake one at that, so he shouldn't have been trying to make Seth go over their when Vanessa would obviously be planning something on her own. She didn't give a shit about Richie, so who the hell knows if Eddie made him Nacho’s or not? 

 

“Seth doesn't eat junk like that anymore,” Vanessa says smugly as Kate looks a little crestfallen. Didn't know that one, did you, you little tramp.

 

“Well he ate them when Eddie made them last time,” Kate grumbles as Vanessa starts to grind her teeth in annoyance, “That’s why he asked me to make them.”

 

“Whatever,” she mutters as she goes back to looking at all Kate’s trashy decorations, “Why do you have all this stuff? I mean, I know that Richie has the mental capacity of a twelve year old but I think even he's too old for this.”

 

Kate glares at her, it almost seems like she’s about to start shouting, but then she takes a deep breath and composes herself.

 

“I just wanted to do something nice for him,” Kate tells her as she adds some spices to her guacamole, “They didn't have a lot growing up and Seth told me how their dad never bothered with them as kids, how he used to hit them and stuff.”

 

Vanessa’s jaw is starting to ache form clenching it all the time, oh so Seth told you did he? The little snake probably used it as a way to seduce Seth when his guard was down. He doesn't talk much about what his dad did to him as a kid and Vanessa never really asked him about it, it was all in the past after all. The fact that Seth was man enough to get over his childhood but Richie just wallowed in self pity and everyone allowed him to was another thing that really irritated her.

 

“Seth got it worse from their dad,” Vanessa snarks at Kate as she slams her first down on the table, “Everyone knows that.”

 

Kate doesn't say anything for a while, clearly thinking up some lie to make her feel sorry for Richie and what a poor pathetic creature he is. 

 

“I don’t think it’s really fair to say one child got it worse than the other,” Kate says eventually, her face a tight mask of emotion, “Especially when you don’t know the full story.”

 

“Really?” Vanessa says as her eyes flash with danger, “So what don’t I know about my own husband hmmm? Why don;t you tell me seeing as you know him _so_ well.”

 

She’d set the question as a trap, to see if Kate would slip up and give herself away but the other girl just stares at her for a while before she starts speaking again.

 

“I wasn’t talking about Seth,” Kate says simply as she goes back to preparing the food.

 

Vanessa just rolls her eyes at her; she’ll have Seth all to herself soon enough so it doesn't matter what Kate is trying to goad her into asking about. Part of her is looking forward to seeing just how much Seth is going to beg her for forgiveness. She smiles broadly at the thought of how Richie is going to take all this. They’ll no doubt be more tears and blubbering at the discovery that his precious little girlfriend is a cheat but Vanessa and Seth will be long gone by then. Seth isn't going to be suckered into feeling sorry for his brother, she won’t allow it. Besides, he’ll be too busy making it up to her and telling her how much he’s going to change. Vanessa has already got a brochure for a new house because there’s no way she’s letting Seth keep Eddie’s old place, not when he’s been fucking that little slut left right and centre in it. El Ray’s is also on the list, she’s already contacted a buyer about that, which means that her and Seth can have a clean break. Begrudgingly they’ll have to give Richie some money as he’s on both leases but the lawyer she spoke to said that they could find a way around that due to Richie’s mental health problems. The psychiatric hospital wouldn't give her the information she was after over the phone so she had rang back later and pretended to be Kate. Now she had a nice little folder full of paper work sitting at home, ready and waiting for when she showed them all just how easily she had played Kate at her own game. 

 

“What’s so funny?” Kate is asking her as she puts the food out on the table. Vanessa must have been smiling to herself, the thought of finally getting rid of Richie was just too much, so she schools her face into what she hopes in a neutral expression. 

 

“Nothing,” she says as nicely as she can, “Nothing at all.”

 

“Ok,” Kate says, although she doesn't look very convinced, “Do you want to help me with the rest of the decorations?”

 

“No,” Vanessa replies bluntly as she turns on her heel and walks away to go sit on the couch.

 

She hears Kate sigh heavily and then try and drag the step ladder thats almost twice the size of her over to the wall. From her position she can see Kate struggling to hang up one the ‘Happy Birthday’ banners as her legs are too short to reach even on the highest step of the ladder. 

 

“Vanessa?” Kate calls out from the kitchen, “Could you hold the ladder for me? It doesn't feel steady.”

 

Vanessa pretends not to hear her and eventually she hears Kate mutter something under her breath and attempt to stick the banner to the wall. Wouldn't it be a blessing if she just fell off and broke her neck, Vanessa muses. Even as she thinks it, the ladder wobbles slightly as Kate stretches up higher to try and stick the banner to the wall. An accidental fall would certainly put an end to Kate, but then she would still be left with idiot Richie; her way was better. Her bag is still sitting out on the coffee table and she clutches it close to her chest. Kate is still occupied with trying not to fall off the ladder so Vanessa takes a quick look to see all of her evidence was still accounted for. It had been foolish to leave it unattended, Kate could have easily snuck something out whilst Vanessa wasn't looking. Thankfully it’s all there, right down to the strand of hair and piece of condom wrapper, and Vanessa quickly adds the lingerie receipt and the used condom to it as well. Kate is still faffing about with the decorations, unfortunately she made it down of the leader without incident, so Vanessa wanders around the living room just to make sure she hadn't missed anything the last time she was here. There’s no black hair on the couch cushions or anything else that looks out of place, except for Eddie’s urn which is has now been moved to the fireplace. Why haven't they got rid of it yet? Eddie’s been dead for ages but Richie keeps insisting that they keep him around like some morbid curiosity. A handful of birthday cards have been placed alongside it, one from the nurses at Richie’s old hospital, one from some guy called Zolo, another from whoever Burt is, one from the Fuller family and one from Seth. Vanessa scowls at it, she hadn't seen Seth buy Richie a card or known when he had come by to drop it off. He must have done it when he had finished banging Kate and was feeling guilty.The last is a ridiculously oversized birthday card with the phrase “I A-Dumbledore You” on the front. Vanessa picks it up and opens it; the entire card is filled with Kate’s tiny hand writing and when she turns it over, she finds it continues onto the back as well. She scans through the words briefly and finds it full of overly sentimental bullshit.

 

“Ugghh,” Vanessa mutters as she crumples it up and throws it into the fireplace.

 

She can hear Kate coming towards the living room so she hurries back over to the couch and takes her seat.

 

“I’m setting the table now,” Kate says awkwardly as she stands in the doorway, “Would you like to help me? I know Seth would be pleased that we’re getting along.”

 

She smiles at Vanessa when she finishes her little speech and Vanessa would quite like to go and punch her right in her smug little face. How dare she stand there and tell _her_ what Seth would want?! Seth is her husband, not that spineless midgets, and no matter how hard Kate is trying to pull him away from her; Vanessa isn't giving in without a fight. 

 

“Vanessa?” Kate asks with a hint of worry in her voice, “Are you ok?”

 

“I’m fine,” she says shortly as she brushes past Kate on her way to the kitchen. There’s no way she’ll give that little monster the satisfaction of seeing that she’s got under her skin. It won’t be long before Seth comes back and then Vanessa will have them all exactly where she wants them. 

 

“Ok, you can do the food it you’d prefer that,” Kate is saying as she hurries in after her, she really is very short, Vanessa thinks to herself.

 

“Fine,” she says, and even though she sounds as an unenthusiastically as possible, Kate still manages to smile at her.

 

“Great,” Kate says chirpily as she grabs a handful of cutlery out of the draw, “I think the chilli is done, probably just needs a stir, and the salsa and guacamole can come out of the fridge now.” 

 

Vanessa makes a show of stirring the huge pot of chilli on the stove but when Kate’s back is turned she adds a few teaspoons of her own special ingredient; the drain cleaner that had been sitting under the kitchen sink. Smirking to her self, she hears the tell tale ping of a tex message alert and Kate grabs her phone of the side before Vanessa can get to it first. Then she has to stand there and watch as a smug little smile spreads across Kate’s face as she types out a reply and puts her phone in the pocket of her dress.

 

“Who was that from?” Vanessa asks instantly as Kate heads over to the freezer and pulls out a bag of food.

 

“Huh?” Kate says unhelpfully, as she starts putting stuff onto a baking tray.

 

“ _The text message_ ,” Vanessa snaps, her patience is beginning to wear thin now, “Who was it from?”

 

“Oh, nobody,” Kate says, smiling as she pulls the over door open and picks up the tray.

 

It’s only then that Vanessa realises what Kate s holding; it’s fucking mozzarella sticks! That little fucking bitch! Without any thought to the consequences, she lunges forward and smacks the tray straight out of Kate’s hands; sending the whole lot tumbling onto the floor. 

 

“Hey!” Kate yells as she stand there in shock as the tray bounces off the floor. 

 

“Sorry,” Vanessa apologises, as Kate stares down at the food in disbelief, “I must have slipped.”

 

She doesn't wait for Kate to respond and instead, turns her back on her and goes back to stirring the chilli. Inside she’s fuming; it was one thing to see all those receipts where Kate had been stuffing her face with that disgusting food but to have that little witch actually whip them out in front of her was unforgivable. Just who in the hell does Kate think she is? The spoon in her hand is starting to bend as her hand clenches around it, she aught to take this whole bowl of chilli and dump it all over Kate’s head. That would serve the little madam right, she thinks bitterly as Kate starts to pick up the fallen food. Vanessa can hear her muttering to herself, probably pissed off that her little stunt didn't work out the way she planned. Kate probably thought that Seth would find it sexy, her eating those big blobs of cheese in front of him and right under Vanessa’s nose. 

 

“I guess I’ll just put these in the trash then,” Kate mumbles as she stomps past Vanessa to the trash can outside. 

 

“Why don’t you throw your self in whist you’re at it,” Vanessa snarls under her breath, “Do us all a favour.”

 

When she returns, Kate walks straight past Vanessa and ignores her as she goes back to putting stuff out on the table. They end up working in silence; each woman studious pretending the other doesn't exist. Vanessa doesn't see why Kate should be so pissy with _her._ After all, it’s Kate that started this whole thing by being a devious little flirt and trying to sucker Seth into starting this secret relationship with her. Deep down, she knew that Seth wouldn't have been the one to start it, not because Kate was Richie’s girlfriend, but because Vanessa is far better suited to him then that prissy little troll. Seth would never willingly cheat on her or carry on an affair for this long, not unless the girl in question had some hold over him; something that Kate clearly had. As she rigorously stirs the chilli she tries to think up some expiation of what Kate could have that she doesn’t. Five minutes later she gives up; there’s no use comparing herself to Kate because Vanessa is superior in every aspect, she has great hair, a good body, she managed to snare Seth _and_ marry him before that jumped up little cow had even laid eyes on him. Maybe it was purely sexual but then, Kate had only had Richie to practice on so it wasn't like she would even be any good between the sheets. She watches Kate scampering around in that little cotton sundress as she finishes laying the table. It wouldn't surprise her if she found out that Kate wasn't a virgin before she got with Richie, it was probably just a cover up so she could play up to her sweet and innocent preachers daughter act. Kate was probably just some hooker trying her luck at getting her claws into Eddie’s estate.

 

“Right,” Kate says out loud, “Tables all set, now we just have to wait for Richie to get home!”

 

Kate seems bizarrely excited at the prospect of Richie coming home and seeing all the shitty decorations she had set out for him. Vanessa couldn't think of anything worse then coming home and seeing Richard Gecko everyday; it was bad enough when she had to suffer through all those years of living with his crazy ass. In a moment of pure desperation she had debated flirting with Richie for a while, just to make Seth jealous. In the the end Vanessa decided her stomach just couldn’t take it so she moved onto plan b which was destroying his birthday party. It wasn't that the younger Gecko was ugly or anything, he was just weird and was always saying or doing strange things; sometimes Vanessa wondered if the brothers were even related. Richie probably wouldn't have even realised she was flirting with him anyway; she's pretty sure he’s only coerced one other girl to sleep with him besides Kate.

 

“I can’t wait for Richie to see everything,” Kate blabbers away as she comes and stands far too close for Vanessa’s liking, “He’s going to be so excited!”

 

“Excited?” Vanessa snorts as she throws the spoon down she had been using to stir the chilli with, “It’s not like he’s never seen a balloon before, didn't they have birthday parties in that nut house he was locked up in?”

 

“Yes they did actually,” Kate snaps back at her as she draws herself up to her full, insignificant, height and crosses her arms, “But Seth told me that they weren’t allowed decorations or anything.”

 

“Why’s that then?” Vanessa asks nastily, “Incase they tried to hang themselves with them? I don’t think Richie’s tried that one yet has he, you wouldn't want to give him any ideas now, would you?” 

 

Kate’s face goes very red, in fact she almost looks like’s she’s about to cry, as she stares angrily at Vanessa.

 

“That’s a horrible thing to say!” she splutters, the shock evident on her face.

 

Vanessa just shrugs; she isn't saying anything that they don't all ready know. If Richie had just succeed in doing himself in then they wouldn't all be in this mess right now.

 

“When is Seth getting back anyway?” she asks as Kate still looks like she’s about to explode from anger, “Surely it can’t take that long to get Richie?”

 

“His session finishes as six,” Kate snaps as she turns away and starts slamming the chilli into bowls, “Seth might have taken him somewhere else before he comes back here.”

 

“Where would he take him?” Vanessa demands, she doesn't want to be stuck here with this adulterous little goblin a moment longer, “And why wouldn't he tell me what he was doing?!”

 

“I don’t know, I’m not a mind reader,” Kate snarls sarcastically as she goes to put the bowls on the table, “Probably because he knows that you would kick off like you normally do whenever Seth wants to spend time with Richie.”

 

“Oh, so you’ve talked to Seth about me have you?” Vanessa snarls as she storms over to Kate and grabs her roughly by the arm, “What exactly have you been saying about me to _my_ husband?”

 

Kate is staring at her like she’s lost the plot and maybe she has but Vanessa will be damned if she’s going to let Kate make a fool out of her. She’s probably been in Seth’s ear from the beginning saying all sorts of lies about her, how mean she is to poor befuddled Richie or how she doesn't treat Seth like a proper wife would.

 

“Nothing!” Kate says defensively, as she starts to move away from Vanessa, “Look, I’m sure that they’ll be back soon. Then we can al have a nice time together as a family.”

 

She’s smiling at her again in that annoying, idiotic way of hers and Vanessa can’t help but sneer at her. Fine; she’ll play Kate’s little game until its time for her to bring this whole stupid party crashing down around them. Vanessa can forgive Seth; it's not his fault that this insipid little girl has turned his head. Kate is still giving her a wide birth so Vanessa forces her face into a smile.

 

“Fine,” she says as nicely as she can, “We’ll just wait for the them to get back.”

 

“Ok,” Kate agrees as she backs away hastily and Vanessa notices more than once that her eyes dart towards the doorway.

 

After their little exchange of words, Kate sticks to the opposite end of the room from Vanessa as she goes about fixing up the last of the decorations. There’s a bunch of party hats laid out on the table that Vanessa would rather be dead then actually be seen wearing. There’s another ping sound and Kate is frantically pulling her phone out of her pocket; a big stupid grin spreads across her face as she reads the text message.

 

“THEY’RE HERE!” she squeals excitedly as she scampers over to Vanessa and starts to drag her towards the doorway. The sound of Seth’s car pulling into the driveway is evident and Vanessa’s heart begins to pound in her chest; in a few hours time she’ll have the answers she was looking for and Kate’s perfect little family facade will be in tatters. 

 

“Ok, so the plan is when Seth brings Richie in,” Kate tells her quickly as the sound of the car door’s slamming echo’s through the house, “We’re going to keep quiet and then jump up and yell Surprise!”

 

Vanessa snorts; what a stupid idea. Even Richie must know that this idiot has planned something for his birthday. Probably out of guilt due to her cheating on him with his own brother.

 

“That’s stupid,” she sneers at Kate, “He probably knows your home anyway; It’s not like you have a job to go to.”

 

Kate scowls at her but before she can say anything, the front door opens and Seth comes in, closely followed by Richie who has Seth’s tie wrapped tightly around his eyes. Seth spots them and motions them backwards with his hand and Vanessa finds herself being dragged back a few paces by her arm, as Kate moves her out of the boys path.

 

“Don’t touch me!” Vanessa hisses as she wrenches her arm free just as Seth makes a shushing motion at her. She gives him a nasty look but refrains from saying anything else as Richie stumbles towards the door.

 

Meanwhile, Kate either didn't hear her or chose to ignore her remark because she’s too busy grinning away like an idiot, as Seth tries to pull his brother through the door without causing any serious injury.

 

“Mind the step,” Seth is telling Richie, as he grabs hold of him by the arm, “CAREFUL!”

 

“Seth,” Richie wines as he clings onto Seth’s arm to prevent himself from falling, “I don’t like this.”

 

How someone can be so inept that they can’t even get through a doorway? It’s probably all that medication that has addled Richie’s already broken brain.

 

“I said be careful!” Seth instructs as Richie almost trips over the doorway again. 

 

Next to her, Kate is still grinning away like a moron and Vanessa “accidentally” kicks her in the back of the leg as she scurries forward.

 

“OUCH!” Kate yelps, as she hobbles on her leg in pain before she claps her hand over a mouth. It’s too late and Vanessa smirks to herself as Richie’s head turns to look, unseeingly, exactly where Kate is standing. 

 

“Kate? Kate is that you?” Richie asks suddenly as he stops dead in his tracks, “This isn't funny guys!”

 

Kate freezes in place one one leg and Vanessa is just itching to kick her again so this whole ridiculous nonsense can come to an end. Why on earth are they going to all this trouble for Richie of all people? If it hadn't been for Richie, Vanessa and Seth would be perfectly happy by now, probably in a bigger house and perhaps even with a kid on the way. A horrible thought suddenly enters her head; what if Seth and Kate had planned all this fuss over Richie to hide their real agenda? This whole ordeal could just be to soften the blow when the pair of them announce that they’re leaving their prospective partners and shaking up together! No, Seth might be foolish enough to want a little bit extra on the side but he would never actually leave her for that dumb little troll. It was clear to her that Seth had just wanted a bit of fun or had fallen under Kate’s spell and couldn't see a means of escape. He had probably tried to put an end to the affair on numerous occasions but Kate, the sneaky little witch, had somehow convinced him to stick with her. Well not for much longer Vanessa tells herself as she purposely knocks into Kate’s shoulder as she moves closer to Seth, sending the other girl almost spinning to the floor.

 

“Agghh,” she squeals as she struggles to remain standing before Seth comes to her rescue and grabs her by the elbow.

 

“What are you guys doing?” Richie wines again as refuses to move from the doorway despite Seth’s insistent tugging, “I don’t want to do this anymore!”

 

“Don’t be a baby,” Seth scolds as he waves Kate out of the way, “Just come towards me, I’m not going to let you fall on your ass.”

 

“Yeah, I’ve heard that one before,” Richie mutters, but he takes hold of Seth’s arm  anyway.

 

“That was one time Richie!” Seth snaps as he pulls Richie towards him, “It’s not _my_ fault you have no coordination skills!”

 

“It’s hard when you’re tall!” Richie grumbles back as he stumbles forwards a few more paces, “Just because you’re closer to the ground…”

 

“That’s enough with the short jokes!” Seth cuts in as he jabs his finger at Richie, “Especially when your girlfriend is basically a Hobbit.”

 

“Hey!” Kate chimes in as well, before she remembers she’s supposed to be quiet.

 

Vanessa taps her foot impatiently as all three of them start to bicker back and forth; she hates it when they do this. It was bad enough when it was just Seth and Richie doing it but now they've got Kate in on the act as well. Kate is still hopping about from foot to foot like an over excited toddler, as Seth steadies Richie with his hand.

 

“Get a grip,” Vanessa mumbles, mostly to herself, but Kate seems to have heard her any way as she turns around and stares at her.

 

“Pardon me?” she whispers, but there’s an edge to her voice and Vanessa can see the same frenzied look she got at her own dinner party creeping over Kate’s face.

 

Vanessa ought to slap the shit right out of her but that would, again, leave her looking like the crazy one; no matter how much Kate is obviously trying to draw her into a fight.

 

“Nothing,” she replies sweetly as she smiles at Kate, just as Seth turns to look at her. She had hoped he would tell Kate off for talking but instead he rounds on them both.

 

“Will you two _shush_!” he hisses as he holds Richie steady with his hand, “You’re ruining it!”

 

“I’m not ruining it!” Kate hisses back at him, “ _I_ was being quiet until…”

 

“Just be quiet!” Seth re-hisses as he tries to stop Richie from walking any further.

 

“I just said I was being quiet!” Kate whispers back, her voice rising as well as the colour in her cheeks, “It’s _you_ that keeps on talking to _me_!”

 

“Zip it Bilbo Bagins!”

 

Kate clenches her fists, evidently fuming, as she fires back at Seth in the quietest voice she can.

 

“Take’s one to know one.”

 

“What are you, _twelve_?” Seth snarks back a her.

 

“You know, I might not be able to see,”Richie grumbles from the doorway, “But I’m not deaf.”

 

“That’s a shame,” Vanessa says, loud enough so Richie can hear her.

 

“Vanessa?” Richie asks in confusion as Seth attempts to drag him further forward.

 

Kate gives her another nasty look and Vanessa doesn't even bother to hide her eye roll. Let the little bitch be pissed at her, hopefully if Kate gets mad enough, she’ll slip up on her little charade of actually pretending to care about anyone other than herself. Vanessa’s never brought that down-home, Little Miss Jesus act anyway. It was all she’d heard for weeks when Kate and Richie first started dating; Kate’s so nice, Kate’s so sweet, isn't it great how Richie finally found someone as great as mother fucking Kate Fuller! Eddie had licked Kate’s ass as well and Vanessa wouldn't be at all surprised if she found out that Kate was sleeping with him too. Why else would he let her live rent free with Richie in his house? He never even considered letting Vanessa stay there, not even when she told him how much more sense it would have made. Richie was more than likely going tend up back in the hospital so it should have been her and Seth that got to live there. Eddie hadn't seen it that way and had had the audacity to ask her to leave his house when she had mentioned it to him.

 

Seth is still intent on continuing their little game of pretence, obviously he learnt well enough from Kate, and he helps Richie negotiate the hallway between the door and the living room. Vanessa was hoping that the clumsy idiot would trip and smash his head open in the wooden floor but Seth has a firm grip on him. Kate has scuttled off back to the kitchen for some bit of decorative tat or other so Vanessa is left to watch the ridiculous performance in front of her. 

 

“You got your eyes shut?” Seth asks as he guides Richie through the door, “I don’t want you cheating.”

 

Cheating? That’s a bit rich coming from Seth, Vanessa seethes. Perhaps Richie wouldn't be so trusting of his brother once he finds out what he’s been up to behind his back. That’s the bit that Vanessa is looking forward to the most; seeing Richie’s sad, miserable face when he finds out that his precious little princess is a common gutter whore and his brother doesn't give two shits about him. 

 

“Seth, you know I can’t see shit without my glasses on,” Richie grumbles as he almost walks into the wall, “What are you doing anyway? This better not be a joke.”

 

It’s almost laughable at the amount of effort that Kate and Seth are going to cover up their tracks; all this rubbish about making a fuss over Richie is clearly to try and throw her off the scent. Vanessa huffs out loud in impatience as Kate comes hurrying back from the kitchen with what looks like a huge plastic party popper. Seth motions her to stand right in front of him and Richie as he prepares to take the tie off from around Richie’s head. This whole charade is taking longer than she has the patience for. Something is bugging her though; how did Kate even know that Seth was on his way back? He hadn't specified a time when he left to pick up Richie, nor had he made any mention of this ridiculous surprise to Vanessa. Then it clicks; the text message must have been from Seth! 

 

Vanessa grabs Kate by the arm and pulls her around to face her; she's not about to let her get away with this shit! 

 

“How did you…?” Vanessa begins but is promptly cut off by a loud bang as the confetti bomb Kate had been aiming over Richie’s head goes off straight in her face; covering her from head to toe in pieces of brightly coloured paper.

 

“What the _fuck_ are you two _doing_?” Seth hisses as he holds his arm out to prevent Richie from falling over.

 

Vanessa spits out several pieces of confetti and tries to clear the paper covering her eyes. Kate has the audacity to look pissed off with her and Vanessa’s hands ball up into fists as she stands there, feeling utterly humiliated.

 

“Three, two, one,” Seth counts down as reaches up and pulls the blindfold off and pulls Kate forward by the hand at the same time, “Open your eyes!”

 

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” Kate and Seth chorus loudly as they both start jumping about and clapping like a pair of seals.  

 

Richie opens his eyes, blinking owlish as he looks around at them all staring at him. Vanessa glares at him, even though she knows he can’t see without his stupid glasses on, and tries to shove Kate away from her. 

 

“SURPRISE!!” Kate screams, right in Vanessa’s ear, as she runs off to give Richie a big hug.

 

Seth leaves them too it and turns around to his wife and bursts out laughing as Vanessa tries not to choke on more bits of paper.

 

“Wow,” Seth jests as he brushes a few bits of confetti out of Vanessa’s hair, “You’re really getting into the party mode, aren't you honey?!”

 

Vanessa pushes him away from her, as she tries unsuccessfully to brush all the bits of paper out of her hair. She’s going to get that little witch for this! Seth gives her a weird look before he turns his attentions back to his brother. Kate is still making a big show of being all over Richie, even getting up on her tip toes to kiss him and taking him by the hand as she proudly shows of her decorating skills.

 

“Seth,” Richie says as he squints around at what Kate is trying to show him, “I can’t see.”

 

“Ohh, sorry buddy,” Seth says as he pulls Richie’s glasses out of his pocket and hands them to him, “There ya go.”

 

Once he’s got his glasses on, Richie does a double take as he finally gets a good look at all the shit Kate had hung up. The poor idiot, Vanessa thinks as Kate bounces around gleefully, in few hours time he won’t be looking so happy; not once Vanessa has had her say.

 

“You did this for me?” Richie asks, somewhat bashful as he looks around at the multitude of streamers and banners Kate had hung up.

 

“Course we did,” Seth says as he claps him on the back, “You are my favourite brother after all.”

 

“I’m your only brother,” Richie says seriously as he pushes his glasses further his nose.

 

“It’s just a joke Richie,” Seth sighs as he looks fondly at his brother. 

 

“A joke is supposed to make people laugh Seth,” Richie tells him, “Maybe if you applied yourself a little more, then you’d actually be funny.” 

 

“Ok, Ok! Enough with the smart stuff!” Seth yells as he throws his hands up, “Go and enjoy your birthday.”

 

Kate is jabbering away excitedly as she drags Richie into the kitchen to look at the rest of the crap she had wasted all her money on, leaving Seth and Vanessa follow in behind them. 

 

“You do like it though?” she worries as Richie fights his way through the sea of balloons to get to the table, “It’s not too much is it?”

 

“Yeah!” Richie exclaims excitedly as he takes in the sea of blue banners that are pinned on the wall behind the table, “I never had a birthday party before.”

 

This is apparently too much for Kate, and she suddenly dissolves into loud nosy tears, leaving Vanessa to watch on in disgust as Seth and Richie rally around her to find out what’s wrong. Really she should give Kate some credit at how clever she’s being, not even Vanessa could pull off fake tears that look that realistic.  

 

“Kate?” Richie ask, his voice full of concern as he takes her hand, “Baby what’s wrong?”

 

Kate just lets out another a loud wail and brushes the tears off her face with the back of her hand. Seth looks at Richie in alarm, as Kate tries to get a sentence out without blubbering her way through it. 

 

“I’m - Just - Happy - That - You’re - Happy,” she tells Richie, in between overdramatic sobs and much flailing about, “I - Just - Wanted - It - To - Be - Nice - For - You.”

 

“Awww,” Richie says as he scoops her up into a hug, “Seriously Kate, this is the best birthday I’ve ever had.”

 

Kate buries her tear stained face into his chest and cries even harder as Vanessa looks on in disbelief at the lengths Kate will go to to keep her secret affair under wraps. All this crying and wailing; it’s pure manipulation and evidently working very well as Seth pats Kate on the back.

 

“Oh my God,” he groans, as Kate wipes her tears on Richie’s t shirt, “You two are ridiculous. Kate, if your like this now what are you going to be like when we..”

 

“Shush!” Kate says suddenly as her watery eyes dart between Seth and Richie. 

 

Seth shuts up instantly and Vanessa’s brain is practically exploding as it begins to go into overdrive again.

 

“When you what?” she demands, as she pulls Seth away from Richie and Kate, “What are you talking about Seth.”

 

The answer better be “When I come clean about my affair and cut Richie and Kate completely out of my life” or Vanessa is going to start throwing furniture again. Seth is looking at her, in a slightly alarmed way, and she can almost hear his mind whirling away as he frantically tries to make something up.

 

“When we, errr…cut the cake,” Seth tells her unconvincingly as he gives her one of his best smiles, before he turns towards his brother, “Sorry Buddy, didn’t mean to ruin that for you.”

 

“I’ve got a cake too?!” Richie yells happily, oblivious to the fact that his brother almost admitted to having an affair with his girlfriend, “THIS IS SO COOL!”

 

Vanessa can’t help but roll her eyes at him as Kate finally stops crying and starts bragging to Richie about all the effort she went to just to stick up some brightly coloured bits of paper. Evidently she’s forgotten to add the bit where she tried to seduce Seth by wearing that ridiculous short robe. Her ire is unfortunately noticed by Seth and he isn't looking best pleased with her, a fact that pisses her off even more, so she glares at him until he gives in and drags her away from Kate and Richie.

 

“What’s with all the eye rolling?” he snaps at her as he pushes her into the corner and out of earshot, “You’ve been acting weird all fucking day!”

 

“You treat him like a baby!” Vanessa snarls at him as she throws her hands up in frustration, “He’s a grown man, not a toddler! It’s weird!”

 

“It’s just a bit of fun, lighten up would you!” Seth tells her as he glances back at Kate and Richie who are still fawning all over each other, “What’s so bad about wanting to do something nice for him? He never had any of this as a kid, don’t ruin it for him.”

 

“It won’t be me that ruins it!” Vanessa snaps as she pushes past him and goes to sit down at the table, stabbing her heel through one of the balloons as she goes. It’s only then that she realises she left her handbag, with all her evidence in, in the other room. Shit, she’d have to make up some excuse to and get it later so she could lay out all the proof she had of Seth and Kate’s affair. They’re in the kitchen now, the two of them with their heads pressed together, whispering away to each other. Richie is evidently too mental unstable to even realises something is going on, because he’s still completely enamoured by all the decorations Kate has put up.

 

“Are you part of the decorations too?” Richie asks her suddenly, pulling her attention away from her cheating husband and that little harlot, as he points to her hair.

 

“What?” Vanessa snarls at him, her hand going automatically to her head.

 

“The confetti,” he says as he gestures towards her hair again, “It looks nice.”

 

Even as she runs her hands through her hair, large amounts or coloured paper continue to fall out all over the table.

 

“Shut up,” she snaps, as she tries to brush out the rest of the paper, “Even you can’t be that stupid to think that I’d actually want my hair to look like this or that I’d even want to come to your freak-show of a birthday party!”

 

Richie looks slightly taken aback but he doesn't say anything else to her as he waits for Kate and Seth to bring the food in; Vanessa still trying to pick bits of paper out of her hair. Her brain is almost starting to boil over with hatred, trust that nasty little bitch to make her look like an idiot so even Richie, of all people, could make fun of her. 

 

“Did you know that confetti was first used in its paper form by a guy called Enrico Mangili?” Richie starts to ramble away, evidently he can’t keep his mouth shut for five minutes, “He began collecting the small punched paper disks that were left as a byproduct from the production of the holed sheets used by silkworm breeders as cage bedding, and selling them for profit. Before that people just used to throw chalk balls at each other. Isn’t that neat?”

 

“No, it’s not fucking neat,” Vanessa hisses as more paper falls out of her hair, “It’s weird and stupid just like all the rest of the shit you say!”

 

“But I was just…” Richie starts to say but Vanessa cuts across him, her patience is stretched to breaking point after having spent all day stuck with Kate and now having to put up with Richie.

 

“Are you that messed up in the head that you can’t see whats going on here?” she says as her eyes almost budge out of her head with indignation, “Open your _fucking_ eyes Richard!”

 

“What are you talking about?” Richie asks, his expression turning all sad and Vanessa almost feels sorry for him. Richie wouldn't last five minutes without Seth around to pick up the pieces when he inevitably goes of the rails again.

 

“You’re such an _idiot_ ,” Vanessa mutters as she sits back in her chair, crosses her arms and ignores the whole hurt puppy look Richie’s got going on. She saw enough of that to last her a life time when she was forced to live under the same roof as him. He might be able to fool Seth with his poor, tortured soul act but Vanessa has always been able to see straight through him.

 

“Richie?” It’s Kate, back from her flirting session with Seth and carrying a large bowl, “What’s wrong?”

 

There’s an awkward pause as she takes one look at Richie’s pathetic sad face and then turns to Vanessa; her face turning thunderous as she glares at her.

 

“What did you say to him? Why is he upset?!” she demands but Vanessa is spared answering as Richie spots what’s in the bowl that Kate is holding.

 

“UNCLE EDDIE’S NACHOS!” Richie exclaims loudly as Kate sets a big bowl down in the middle of table, “Awesome!”

 

“Made by my very own fair hands,” Kate says proudly as she dishes him out a large serving.

 

“You made them?!” Richie asks incredulously, like spooning melted cheese onto chips is such an arduous task.  

 

“Yeah, I just wanted you to have something from Eddie on your birthday,” Kate tells him, the smugness radiating off her as Vanessa’s lip curls in disgust, “That’s ok isn't it?”

 

She looks worried, like Richie might flip out at the mere mention of his dead Uncle. Kate probably didn't even do for Richie anyway, its more likely that she wanted to impress Seth and show him what a good little girlfriend she could be if he just got rid of his wife. Vanessa could easily have gotten Seth something as a reminder of his Uncle; they've got a ton of Eddie’s old crap back at home. Granted most of it had gone in the trash when Seth wasn't looking but there’s probably an old t shirt hanging around somewhere.

 

“Seriously Kate,” Richie says as he pulls her down to sit in his lap, brushing her hair away from her face as he strokes her cheek,“You’re the best!”

 

Kate beams at him as she leans into kiss him and Vanessa tries not to gag at the sight; its bad enough knowing that Kate is having an affair with her husband but seeing her throw her pretend relationship with Richie in her face is just disgusting.

 

“Come on you two, don’t go all mushy on me,” Seth groans as barges his way in-between them, “You can suck each others faces after we’ve gone. It’s chow time!”

 

Kate pokes her tongue out at him before she gives Richie one last kiss and slips into the seat next to him. Seth dishes up the rest of the food for everyone and sets the jug of punch in the middle of the table. Once he’s sure everyone’s got enough food, he takes his seat next to Vanessa.

 

“That’s sweet isn't it?” Seth says softly to her as he nods across at Richie and Kate who are chattering away to each other like a pair of imbeciles, “That she made it so memorable for him.”

 

Vanessa turns to him and gives him her very best smile as she rubs his leg under the table. 

 

“I don’t think Richie’s _ever_ going to forget what Kate did to him on his birthday,” she tells him, her smile growing ever wider, “In fact, I think this is one night we’re all going to remember for a _very_ long time.”

 

Seth beams at her before he joins in whatever ridiculous conversation Kate and Richie are having, some rubbish about a film they used to watch with Uncle Eddie.

Vanessa sits there, smiling broadly to herself, as she prepares to burst that happy little bubble they've all made for themselves.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoyed chapter two, get ready for the rumble in the jungle when Kate and Vanessa face off again in chapter three! Comments and questions greatly appreciated! Thank you all for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

 

 

“Vanessa? Seth asks as he holds up the jug of disgusting, bright red fruit drink that Kate had thrown together, “Punch?”

 

“None for me,” Vanessa replies sweetly as Seth tops up everyone else’s glasses. She smiles smugly to herself as Kate drains almost half her glass in one go; it must be thirsty work having to keep up the prettiness of a fake relationship with Richie whist trying to ensnare Seth at he same time.. 

 

They’d gotten through the meal with relatively little difficulty; Kate had been her usual manipulative self and draped herself all over Richie in a poor display of over exaggerated affection. If this had been any other time, Vanessa would have told her to get over herself but all Kate was doing was simply proving Vanessa with more ammunition for later. She had planned it all out in her head whilst they were all taking there seats; let them get right to the end of the night, just when Kate thinks everyone has gone her way, and then she’d hit them with the truth! It was going to be brilliant and she can just picture that horrid little tramps smug smile slide right off her face as Vanessa finally puts a stop to her little scheme. Seth might be a little pissed that she chose his brothers birthday to expose his affair but she can handle him; he’ll be down on his knees begging her for forgiveness by the end of the night anyway. 

 

“Anyone want any more nachos?” Kate asks as both boys beg her for more she’s even picked up the serving spoon.

 

They both start yelling through mouthfuls of food about how amazing they taste and how amazing Uncle Eddie would think it was that she had carried on with his culinary legacy. It’s little sitting with a bunch of toddlers as they stuff their faces with junk; there’s no way Vanessa would ever let Seth eat like this at home; he’s got bits of cheese hanging off his chin. 

 

“All right, calm down!” Kate laughs as she spoons up the rest of the slop she’s made, trying to act all demure when Vanessa knows she's being a smug little bitch on the inside, “Vanessa? Are you sure you don’t want anything?” 

 

Vanessa had declined any bit of food that had come her way, mainly because she added bleach to half it or in case of the punch, her own spit. Seth get shooting her irritated glances whenever she ungraciously refused anything from Kate but Vanessa had ignored him. Even if she hadn't added her own flavour to the food, theres no way she would have even touched anything that little harlot had made. The chilli had lain forgotten; Seth had mentioned that it “tasted kind of weird” and none of them were able to make it through eve a few mouthfuls which had pleased Vanessa greatly. The disappointed look on Kate’s face’s when she realised that nobody wanted to eat her food was worth staring herself for a couple of hours. 

 

“No,” Vanessa says bluntly just her stomach lets out a loud rumble and Seth lets out an irritated sigh.

 

The snooty look that Kate gives her doesn't go unnoticed and Vanessa almost crushes the plastic party knife in her hand as Kate moves on to serve Richie. Vanessa will drag that little bitch off her high horse now way or another this evening, thats for sure.

 

“This is so cool Kate!” Richie beams as he bounces the ridiculously oversized ballon with his name on it back and forth, “I just wish Eddie was here to see all the effort you’d made.”

 

“Aww babe!” Kate simpers as she sits herself down in his lap, flaunting her bare legs at Seth as her dress rides up, “I’m sure he’s looking down on us; he’s probably annoyed at me that I didn't use the good china!”

 

Both Richie and Seth laugh but Vanessa just rolls her eyes; it wasn't even good china, just some old tat that Eddie would only ever use at his stupid family dinners that Vanessa was never invited to. Eddie had always been cold towards her but when she complained to Seth, he had just shrugged and told her that perhaps if she was more respectful to him, then maybe he’d warm up to her. What a stupid suggestion; it should be Eddie that was trying to impress her, not the other way around! Vanessa had to put up with him sticking his nose in to her business all too often, moaning about how she treated Seth or lying and saying that she was bullying Richie. Richie was a dangerous lunatic and had deserved everything Vanessa had said to him and then some. For some unknown reason, they all acted like Eddie was gods gift to man kind and she has to sit there and listen as they drag up old, boring stories about him. 

 

“He’s probably pissed that we’re not playing that ridiculous jazz music he insisted on playing every time we had family dinner,” Seth chimes in fondly. 

 

“Or that we’re not using the water jug he insisted Burt Reynolds used on the set of Deliverance,” Richie adds as Kate wraps her arm around his neck and kisses him on the cheek.

 

“There’s no way that ugly old thing was ever anywhere near Burt Reynolds,” Seth scoffs. 

 

“Eddie had the best stories,” Richie says wistfully as Kate dries the corner of her eyes on a napkin.

 

Clearly another indication that Kate was screwing Eddie as well; that’s probably what caused him to have that stroke Vanessa thinks as she eyes Kate suspiciously. She wouldn't put it past Kate to try her luck with Eddie first to get her grubby little paws on his estate and then when he died unexpectedly, she had set her sights on Seth. 

 

“Yeah he did,” Seth is saying softly before he picks up his glasses and raises it, “To Eddie; the finest bullshitter that ever lived.”

 

“To Eddie,” Richie and Kate chorus as they pick up their Vanessa-spit filled punch glasses and drain them. 

 

Kate still hasn't moved her ass off Richie’s lap or pulled her dress down, it’s practically showing off her underwear, and Vanessa’s lip curls as Kate gives her a tight smile.

 

 

“Hey, Seth,” Richie pipes up just as Vanessa though they were all done with the trip down memory lane, “Remember when we were kids and he took us to-”

 

“Can we drop this now?” Vanessa buts in impatiently before Seth can answer, “Eddie’s dead, it’s not like he’s going to either know or care you’re all talking about him.”

 

Richie looks slightly crestfallen at being scolded whilst Kate gives her a very angry look and Vanessa raises her eyebrows at her; daring her to make a comment on what was only a true assessment of the evenings proceedings. In the end its Seth that decided to embarrass her 

 

“We’e just telling old stories babe,” he says, his eyes narrowed in annoyance, “What’s wrong with that?”

 

“It’s creepy,” Vanessa grumbles, “You shouldn’t need to go on about him all the time.”

 

Seth looks like he’s about to say something back to her but he glances quickly at Richie and seems to decide the better of it. 

 

“Just because someone is gone,” Kate say’s prissily, “That doesn't mean we can’t talk about them.”

 

Vanessa shrugs and ignores her; she’s not being lectured on morals by that spiteful little troll. 

 

“Right,” Seth says loudly as he tries to move past the awkwardness, “I think it might be time for some cake!”

 

Kate leaps up like an over excited child and scurries off to the kitchen whilst Seth flicks the lights off; plunging them all into semi darkness. Then Kate comes clomping back in with her ridiculous monstrosity of a cake, this time with a huge burning candle stuck in the middle of it. Never in her life has Vanessa seen such a display lunacy as both Kate and Seth, Kate with a big dumb grin plastered all over her face, crowd around Richie and sing happy birthday to him. She doesn't miss the fact that Kate’s arm is resting on Seth’s elbow, clearly the little tramp just can’t keep her hands to herself and Vanessa starts to boil over with furry. Richie, the dumb idiot, is clearly easily pleased with all the tacky decorations and obscene cake that Kate has set down in front of him. The reason that nobody has ever bothered to throw him birthday party is because he’s a self centred freak and doesn't deserve anyone going to this amount of effort for him. Vanessa hadn’t bothered getting up once they started singing but Seth is suddenly hauling her to her feet and dragging her over to watch Richie blow out his candles. 

 

 

“Make a wish Buddy!” Seth says excitedly, like Richie is a four year old that needs all this extra attention whilst Kate bounces up and down like his idiot sidekick; grabbing hold of Seth as she does so. Vanessa can’t take this blatant show of disrespect so she slaps Kate’s hand away from Seth, causing Kate to look up at her in shock.

 

“What was that for?” she snaps, as she rubs the red mark Vanessa left on her arm.

 

“There was… a bug,” Vanessa lies as she smiles at Seth, who is now looking at her weirdly as well.

 

Kate doesn't seem to buy it, probably because of the earlier incident with the mozzarella sticks, and she moves to the other side of Richie, far out of Vanessa’s slapping range. They’re all still waiting for Richie to blow out the stupid candle, all those meds have clearly addled Richie’s brain if he can’t even think of one stupid wish, but eventually he blows it out. Then they’re all treated to classic manipulative Kate Fuller, as she swoops down and give Richie a big kiss. Vanessa tries not to retch as the pair of them are almost to the point of making out in front of her; it’s quite surprising at the levels at which Kate will go to just to have Seth all to herself.

 

 

“Save it for later you two,” Seth teases as he nudges them apart when he goes to turn the lights back on, probably because he want the little tramp all to himself, “They’ll be enough time for that after we’ve gone.” 

 

As Kate and Richie unglue themselves from each other Seth smiles at her, but his expression quickly falters as he see’s the murderous look on Vanessa’s face.

 

“What?” he whispers as Kate skips of to get them paper plates and Richie has probably been distracted by one of the shiny decorations.

 

“Nothing!” she hisses back at him, as she stomps off back to her seat whilst he looks at her on confusion. 

 

Before he can try and get anymore out of her, Kate comes back to the table with a stack of tacky looking paper plates and a large knife. The cake looks even more ridiculous up close, the glitter certainly didn't help matters, and Vanessa is more sure then ever that Kate specifically designed it to resemble Seth’s dick. 

 

“Wait just one second there Short Stack,” Seth interrupts, as he holds out his arm to prevent Kate from cutting the cake, “I wanna see what Richie’s take is on your little cake design here.”

 

Kate narrows her eyes at him; clearly wondering why Seth would draw attention to the fact that she has made a cake to look like his penis whilst his wife is stood there. It probably wasn't part of her scheme that Seth would call her out on it; Kate’s sick, perverted brain probably did it to try and keep him interested in her. 

 

“I told you to stop calling me that!” Kate is scolding as she tries to wriggle around Seth, but he easily blocks her path again, causing her to sigh in frustration.

 

“No, you said to stop calling you midget,” Seth grins evilly as Kate glares at him, “Ergo; Short Stack.”

 

“Come on guys,” Richie grumbles, completely oblivious to the little flirting display that Kate and Seth have put on, “I wanna try my cake!”

 

Kate is still muttering about the teasing of her height but Seth ignores her in favour of dragging the cake closer for Richie to see; it really does look very obscene. 

 

“Richie, what does that look like to you?” Seth asks as he turns the cake around so Richie can see it properly, “Take a good look.”

 

Whilst Richie scrutinises his birthday cake, Kate is shaking her head at Seth, who is smiling smugly at her, and looking really annoyed as she rests her hand on Richie’s shoulder. Her hand moves up into his hair and Vanessa grits her teeth in annoyance at the vile display. There’s a crunching sound and she looks down and realises the plastic fork she hadn’t even realised that she had picked up again, has broken into pieces

 

 

“IT’S A SOUR WORM!” Richie shouts excitedly as Kate shoots Seth a very self satisfied grin, just as Seth is throwing his hands up in frustration.

 

“Oh my god,” he grumbles, as he sits back down beside Vanessa “You two are meant for each other.” 

 

“I told you it wasn't a penis,” Kate mutters at Seth as she begins to cut the cake into slices and load up the paper plates.

 

“You keep telling yourself that Princess,” Seth whispers back to her, as she sets a plate down in from of him, “To me, you’ll always be the girl who made the dick cake.”

 

She gives him a very withering look, as she puts the last piece of cake down in front of Vanessa and returns to Richie’s side. Shoving the plate of pink goop aside, she watches them all tuck in, acting like Kate had cured world hunger just by making a stupid birthday cake. It probably tastes as shit as it looks but there’s no way that Vanessa will be tasting it to find out. It would surprise her if Kate had slipped a little something extra into her slice, like a laxative or something, so that Vanessa would have to leave and she could have Seth all to her self.

 

“Remind me to come to you if I ever need any baked good,” Seth is saying through a mouthful of frosting, “Cus even if it does look like a dick; this thing tastes fucking good Princess!”

 

Vanessa almost explodes with rage as she watches Seth take another mouthful of Kate’s rancid cake. Had he forgotten all those carrot cakes that she had made him? All those fucking birthdays that she slaved away in the kitchen baking him, his own fucking birthday cake whilst Richie had selfishly got himself locked up in a mental hospital and couldn't even come to his own brothers birthday?! It had been a nasty lie that Seth had always hated carrot cake, she can see that now, just another thing that Richie had had to spoil for her. Kate is grinning around at them all now, that smug little smile plastered all over her face, and clearly they've all forgotten the pristine carrot cake Vanessa had made which that drunken little beast had knocked onto the floor. She’s still simmering with rage when Seth gets to his feet, like he’s best man at a wedding or something, and starts clinking his glass for attention. 

 

“Now I’m not normally one for big speeches-“

 

“Yes you are,” Richie mutters.

 

“Yes thank you Richard. What I was trying to say before I was rudely interrupted,” Seth says as Richie rolls his eyes at him, “Is that I know that you hit a little bit of bump a couple of months ago but you’ve made it out the other side and I couldn’t be prouder of you. Happy birthday buddy.”

 

He pulls Richie into a huge hug and Vanessa thinks that that’s the end of it until Seth releases Richie and starts speaking again. 

 

“And I’d also like to say a big thank you to Kate, as without her we wouldn't all be sat here having this nice food and the weird looking cake,” he chuckles as everyone turns to look at the rest of Kate’s penis cake, “We all know that if it had been left to me, Richie would probably be left stranded someplace whilst I tried to drink my bodyweight in alcohol.”

 

Before Vanessa can do anything, Kate bounces over, beaming like Seth had proposed to her, and Seth pulls her into a tight embrace; their bodies locking around each other as Seth plants a kiss on her cheek. A great angry beast roars up inside Vanesa and all the anger that she had been sitting on ever since she got here, comes seeping out of her; she just can’t hold it in anymore. Snatching up her plate of pink grunge, Vanessa hurls it straight at the wall were is smashes into tiny pieces, sending bits of cake splattering all over the place.

 

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!” she screams as she stands up so fast that her chair tips over and the other three turn to look at her in a stunned silence, “ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME WITH THS SHIT?!”

 

Richie, who had a fork full of cake halfway to his lips, looks from her to Seth as if this is some kind of joke and even Vanessa is a little taken aback by herself. Her nostrils are flaring as she breaths in and out like an angry buffalo; she was supposed to wait until the end of the meal but seeing Kate in Seth’s arms had tipped her over the edge. Screw the fucking plan! Spoiling Richie’s birthday was just an added extra; little Miss Perfect would be out on the street either way. They’ve broken apart now, Kate even having the audacity to look angry as she backs away over to where Richie has still remained seated.

 

“Vanessa, what-” Seth tires to ask her but Vanessa has finally reached her breaking point and she lets out a loud wail of agony as Kate, Richie and Seth all look at each other in alarm.

 

Seth tries to move towards her but she lets out another loud howl of rage until he retreats away from her. Vanessa just can’t seem to help herself and she beats her fists on the table, crushing the plastic knifes and forks into tiny splinters.

 

“I CAN’T BELIVE YOU’D HURT ME LIKE THIS!” she howls, as Seth starts to look increasingly alarmed, AGGGGHHH! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?!”

 

“Vanessa, what-” Seth starts to ask as he inches closes but Vanessa flies at him in a rage and starts pounding him in the arm with her fists

 

“SHUT UP, YOU PIECE OF SHIT,” she screams at him as she thumps him over and over again, ignoring his pleas for her to stop, “DON’T SAY SHT TO ME! I CAUGHT YOU, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!”

 

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! Seth roars back at her as he finally manages to get away from her, “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!”

 

“OH LIKE YOU DON’T KNOW!” Vanessa screams at him, her eyes almost bulging out of her head as she hurls an empty punch glass at his head, “LIKE YOU DON’T FUCKING KNOW WHAT YOU’VE BEEN DOING!”

 

Seth dodges the glass and looks at the other two for help, Richie is still looking like he has no idea whats going on but Kate is looking pissed as hell as she picks up the smashed plate. 

 

“What the fuck is going on?” Seth asks, seemingly to everyone, as he stares around at them all bewilderedly, “What the fuck is actually happening here?”

 

“DON’T YOU STAND THERE AND ACT LIKE YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU DID!” Vanessa screams at him, her jaw clenched and her hands balled up into fists, “YOU PIECE OF SHIT!”

 

He’s still looking at her in complete confusion but she can see anger creeping in there now; probably because Kate will try and spin this as being all Seth’s fault, that he had seduced her and she was powerless to resists. Well Vanessa knows the truth and she’s not about to let that little harpy get away with this! Speaking of the skanky little whore, Kate isn't looking too pleased that Vanessa has blown her cover but Vanessa is over playing games. 

 

“I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT!” Seth yells at her exasperatedly but he keeps his distance; there’s still a couple of glasses on the table that Vanessa could throw at him.

 

In fact, she's almost reaching for another one when Kate decided to stick her nose in and try and cover up her tracks. 

 

“Seth,” she interjects calmly, as she puts the broken pieces of crockery down on the table, “Perhaps you should take Vanessa outside for a minute, give her a cha-”

 

She doesn’t even make it to the end of her sentence as Vanessa, in a blind fit of rage, smashes her hand down into Richie’s birthday cake and throws a hand full of it straight in Kate’s face. 

 

“YOU LIKE TO HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT DON’T YOU?,” she snarls as she smushes frosting into Kate’s face and hair, “ _YOU STUPID LITTLE WHORE_.”

 

There’s instant uproar; Kate shoves Vanessa away from her, yelling at her even though she can barely see due to the cake in her eyes. Vanessa lets out a loud laugh as she watches Kate flail around in humiliation until Richie, who seems to come out of his state of shock, sits her back down and helps her wipe her face. It all happened so quickly that neither Gecko reacted quickly enough to stop her and Vanessa is just going for another handful of Richie’s ruined birthday cake when Seth intervenes.  

 

“VANESSA?!” he yells as he drags her back by the arm, cake frosting dripping out from between her fingers as she clenches it in her fist, “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!”

 

An angry bellow escapes her as she backhands him across the face with her cake free hand and then starts hammering on his arm with her fists; screaming incoherently whilst Seth yells at her to stop. Something blocks her from landing her latest blow and she looks up to find Richie holding back her arm to stop her from doing any more damage to Seth.

 

“GET OFF HIM!” he shouts at her, breaking her out of her rage as she tries to throw him off; he should be thanking her, not trying to get in between her and Seth! There’s an expression on Richie’s face that she’s never seen before and it takes her a while before she gets it; he’s angry at _her._ Richie had only ever been sad and pathetic whenever Vanessa had paid attention to him, or crying because some big bad monster in a dream had scared him. He was such a baby, always needing Seth to sort him out or sit up with him till all hours of the night just so he whatever imaginary thing he had made up wouldn't attack him whilst he slept. It was like living with a child and Vanessa had treated him as such the moment she laid eyes on him; now its different, Richie doesn't seem so much like a whinny baby as he pulls her back from Seth, standing in the way so she can’t get to him. 

 

“Jesus,” Seth mutters, as he breaths heavily, “What the fuck is all this about Vanessa?”

 

His refusal to admit what he’s been getting up to behind her back sends riles her up once more and she takes another run at him; cursing him as she does so. Unfortunately, Richie hasn't moved and she ends up struggling with him some more, she hadn’t reckoned on just how strong Richie was though, and he easily manages to subdue her, pushing her far away from Seth. His irritatingly calm demeanour only serves to make her even more angry, like she’s the one thats in the wrong here, so she rears back and spits at him in the face. It’s almost like she’s watching the act in slow motion; as Richie looks at her in shock, like anyone could be that disgusting, before he lets go of her and stumbles away as he wipes her spit of his glasses. Seth is swearing at her now, asking why she would do such a thing, but it’s got the job done and she charges back towards him.  

 

 

“WHAT THE FUCK AM I DOING?” she screams as she squares up to Seth some more, “WHAT THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN DOING, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!”

 

Before Seth can even make up some lame excuse again, Richie inserts himself in-between them again and once again tries to stop her from hitting his brother. All this does is enrage her again and she takes a wild swing with her fist; not caring if it hits either one of the Gecko boys. 

 

“VANESSA!” Richie yells, as her fist strikes him on the arm, “WE DON’T USE PHYSICAL VIOLENCE IN THIS HOUSE!”

 

The three of them are almost wrestling each other to the ground at this point, and Vanessa manages to grab a handful of Seth’s shirt and tries to drag him towards her. He tries to pry her hands away but what with Richie in the way and Vanessa’s death grip on him, it proves impossible and there’s a loud tearing noise as she tears the bottom of his shirt away.

 

“VANESSA,” Richie pants, as he tries to prevent her from doing anymore damage, “LET GO!”

 

He’s really struggling to contain the situation now; Seth can’t pull himself free and Vanessa’s rage has pushed her adrenaline up so much that she could probably bench press a small car. 

 

“SHUT UP!” Vanessa screeches at him as she tries to slap his hands away from her, “SHUT UP, YOU STUPID RE- AGGGGHHHH!”

 

A huge fountain of red water suddenly pours down on her, drenching her from head to toe, and she finally lets go of Seth as her sopping wet hair tangles about her face.

 

“There you go,” Kate tells her triumphantly, holding the empty punch jug in her hand as she stands on a chair behind Vanessa, “That ought to cool you down Vanessa.”

 

She hadn't noticed the little troll sneak up behind her whilst she was fighting with the other two and Vanessa wrings out her hair onto the carpet; she’s going to get that little beast if its the last thing she does. Meanwhile, Seth is staring at her like she’s just beamed down from another planet as he tries to sort out his ruined shirt and dry himself off from the punch that splashed onto his arm.

 

“WHAT THE FUCK VANESSA!” he roars at her, he even makes a move towards her but Richie holds him back with his arm, “WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING!”

 

“WHAT AM I DOING?” Vanessa screeches at him, “I’LL SHOW YOU WHAT THE FUCK I’M DOING!”

 

Before anyone can stop her, she kicks the chair out from underneath Kate, causing her to scream out loud as she topples over backwards. She would have hit the floor, cracked her skull on the carpet, if it hadn't been for Richie throwing himself towards her and catching Kate by the shoulders just before she hit the floor.

 

“Are you ok?” he asks her frantically as he brushes her hair out of her eyes and holds her face in his hands. 

 

Vanessa doesn't wait to hear her response as she storms towards the shitty party banners that Kate had hung up and starts tearing them at them like a rabid animal with her hands. Nobody stopes her; they’re all huddled on the floor staring at her like she’s out of her damn mind. Maybe she is, maybe Kate stealing her husband away from her has finally tipped her over the precipice that she’d been dangling on for so long. 

 

“ALL THIS RUBBISH,” she yells, as she pulls down a large happy birthday banner and starts ripping it into pieces, much to the horror of Kate, “ALL THIS SHIT IS JUST A COVER UP! A BIG LIE SO YOU CAN CARRY ON WITH WHAT YOU’RE REALLY DOING!!”

 

She scatters the pieces in front of them before she snatches up the knife cake used to cut the cake and starts stabbing at all the balloons; filling the air with the sound of tiny explosions as she bursts them all. Throwing the knife aside, she drags down another banner and is halfway through tearing into it when Seth comes up behind her and tries to grab her. 

 

“DON’T YOU TOUCH ME!” she screams at him and he backs away for fear that she might go for the knife again, “DON’T YOU COME ANYWHERE NEAR ME!”

 

“WOULD YOU JUST TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG!” Seth bellows at her as he once again looks to the other two for help, “WHAT THE HELL IS THE MATTER VANESSA?!”

 

“YOU’VE BEEN FUCKING HER!” Vanessa screams suddenly, the vein in her temple throbbing as she points an accusatory finger straight at Kate. “DON’T DARE YOU FUCKING LIE TO ME!”

 

The shock that spreads across all their faces is almost laughable; Kate’s mouth is even hanging open in an ugly manner and Vanessa breaths a sigh of relief that it’s all finally out in the open. She’s won, she’s beaten Kate at her own little game and for a minute she feels a great sense of peace that all this is over and that she can be rid of Kate and Richie once and for all; that is until Seth starts speaking.  

 

“WHAT?!” he cries as his head swivels from Vanessa to Kate like a one man Wimbledon contest, “NO I HAVEN’T!”

 

Vanessa pauses, her elation short lived; this wasn't how it was supposed to go. Seth was supposed to be begging her forgiveness by now, promising her that he would change, that Kate had flaunted herself in front of him and turned his mind against him, like the little witch that she is. 

 

“YES YOU HAVE!” Vanessa screeches back at him, “I’VE SEEN YOU TWO TOGETHER, SNEAKING AROUND HAVING SECRETS DINNERS, DON’T YOU DARE DENY IT!!”

 

Seth ignores her outburst in favour of turning to his brother, who is still sat on the floor with a dumbfounded looking Kate, leaving Vanessa silently fuming in the corner.  

 

“Buddy,” he say’s desperately as he comes over to kneel down beside Richie, grabbing hold of him, “I’m not sleeping with Kate. I would _never_ do that to you. Kate would never do that to you, you know that right?!”

 

“Why are you apologising to him?” Vanessa thunders before Richie can respond, “It should be me you’re apologising to, not him!”

 

“Because what you’re saying is ridiculous!” Seth snaps at her but he still doesn't move an inch from Richie’s side, “As if I would sleep with my own brothers girlfriend!”

 

“Yes you would!” Vanessa spits at him, her eyes glinting with malice as she takes a step closer to them, “That little troll sitting next to you seduced you, I know she did!” 

 

Out of nowhere, Kate lets out a loud shriek of hysterical laughter, causing everyone to stare at her as she continues to howl with laughter. Seth looks at her in confusion; he doesn't seem to find it all that funny that he’s been caught out having an affair with his brothers girlfriend.

 

“What’s so funny?” Vanessa snaps as Kate is practically clutching her side due to her frenzied laughter.

 

It takes a while for Kate to finally stop laughing and Vanessa is growing more and more irritated until, finally, Kate gives one last chuckle and picks herself up off the floor. The two boys do the same and Vanessa faces them as she waits for Kate to tell her what was fucking funny about being  shown up to be the lying little bitch she was.

 

“You really are one twisted bitch aren't you?” Kate laughs as she wipes tears from her eyes, “It couldn't possible be down to your horrendous personality that your marriage is failing, could it? So you dreamt up this crackpot theory that Seth is having an affair with me.”

 

“That’s because he is, you spiteful little cretin,” Vanessa hisses at her and she makes a move towards her; she’d love to knock Kate on her ass once and for all, “And I can prove it!”

 

Kate is still staring at her; her hands on her hips as she regards Vanessa with the upmost contempt. In truth, Vanessa had been prepared for Kate to try and weasel her way out of this; she had been on to a good thing with Seth and, all though it pains her to admit it, Richie. There was no way that the poisonous little dwarf was going to give that up without a fight, thats why Vanessa had painstakingly gathered all her evidence. it was going to take a lot more than Kate Fucking Fuller to pull the wool over her eyes. 

 

“Proof?” Kate asks, like its the most preposterous thing in the world, “Proof of what? That we’d all be having a much better time without you or that you’re even more of a bitch than I  thought you were?”

 

She looks so smug, standing there in her stupid little dress and her arms folded like she owns the fucking place. Not for much longer, Vanessa thinks as her mind zeroes in on all the stuff she had in her handbag that would bring Kate’s word crashing down. Before she can do anything though, like slap the smirk right of Kate’s face, Seth intervenes and attempts to push her towards the door.

 

“This is ridiculous,” he says, “Vanessa; apologies to these two and then we’re leaving.”

 

He’s trying to manoeuvre her towards the door but Vanessa won’t budge; she’s not leaving until they admit what they did!

 

“NOT TILL I’VE HAD MY SAY!” she screams at him, and Seth backs of a little but he’s looking pissed off with her, “Like I said; I’ve got proof!” 

 

“No you don’t!” Seth snaps as decides he’s feeling braver and attempts to manhandle her towards the door again, “We are leaving, RIGHT NOW!”

 

Surprisingly, it’s Kate that comes to Vanessa’s aid as she stops Seth from removing Vanessa from the house, her irritating little face hoping up near Vanessa’s elbow. If Seth hadn't had hold of her, she would have rammed it straight into Kate’s jaw.  

 

“No Seth,” she says as she leads them back over to the semi destroyed dining room, “Let her talk.”

 

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Seth mutters as he trudges after her, keeping a good bit of distance in between Vanessa and Kate.

 

Kate ignores him as she picks her way back through all the torn up pieces of Richie’s birthday banners and burst balloons; Vanessa really did a number on the decorations and there isn't one of them that isn't in shredded into tatters. Richie hasn't really said much since the big revelation but he does wrap his hand around Kate’s as she stands next to him; more fool him Vanessa thinks as she glares over at Kate. 

 

“Come on Vanessa let’s hear it,” Kate asks, tossing her hands up in indignation, “Let’s hear how you came up with this ridiculous idea that Seth and I are having an affair.”

 

“Like I said,” Vanessa hisses at her, a huge smile on her lips, “ _I’VE GOT PROOF!”_

 

Without waiting for any of them to respond, she turns on her heel and marches back to the living room; leaving the other three to trail after her, Kate breathing hard through her nose like an angry rhino as she stomps along behind them. Her purse is still tucked neatly away where she left it and she snatches it up before any of the others can get their hands on it; she still wouldn't put it past Kate to get it off her somehow. 

 

“Let me tell you _how_ you fucked up,” Vanessa say’s gleefully as she tips her purse out, sending Kate’s shirt and various see-though freezer bags spilling out onto the coffee table, “Let me show you _exactly_ how you fucked up!”

 

She starts spreading out all her little evidence bags whilst the other three just shrug at each other and Vanessa frantically tries to decided what her first piece of evidence should be.

 

“Is that my shirt?!” Kate asks as her horrid, plaid shirt tumbles out of Vanessa’s purse and falls onto the floor.

 

“Oh you noticed that was missing did you?” Vanessa hisses as she snatches up the shirt before Kate can stop her, “Guess where I found it? IN THE TRUNK OF SETH’S CAR!”

 

Kate shakes her head at her, like she's being ridiculous, until Seth comes to her rescue again.

 

“So you found her shirt in my car?” he asks her, “Big deal!”

 

Vanessa snorts at him and starts unraveling the shirt until she finds the white stain on the front.

 

“The big deal is that she was using to wipe up her mess,” she cries as she waves in front of them, “AFTER YOU WERE FINISHED FUCKING HER!”

 

Then she throws the shirt straight at Kate, catching her off guard as the material wraps itself around her face. Kate splutters loudly until she manages to pull the shirt off and throw it to the ground. 

 

“So you think because you found her shirt in my car with a stain on it,” Seth asks her, “That we’re fucking?!”

 

“Oh course it does!” Vanessa yells at him, “What else could it mean?!”

 

“Well I’ve got news for you Sherlock,” Seth snaps at her, “That isn't my jizz stain on there, it’s-” 

 

“Seth!” Kate says warningly and Vanessa is certain she see’s something flash between the pair of them, some flicker of understanding as Seth suddenly stops mid sentence.

 

“What was it Seth?” Vanessa asks, “Come on, we all want to know what was on her shirt!”

 

“Milkshake!” Seth fires back at her, “It was fucking milkshake from we all went to the Shake Shake, now are you satisfied?”

 

“Liar!” Vanessa cries just as Kate starts rummaging through all her little bags and unearth’s something small and shinny from underneath the mountain of receipts. 

 

“MY LOCKET!” she cries as she holds it up, a look a realisation spreading across her face as she jabs her finger at Vanessa, “It was you, wasn't it? You broke into our house and stole it whilst I was sleeping! Richie said I must have lost it, but I knew, I knew someone was in the house!”

 

 

“It’s a good job I did, you little sneak!” Vanessa hisses at her, so venomously that Kate takes a step backwards, “Otherwise I wouldn't have found the note with the code to Seth office! That’s were you’ve been fucking each other all this time, isn't it? IS’NT IT?!”

 

“ _What is wrong with you_?” Kate asks, and Vanessa can see a hint of fear in her eyes as she takes in what Vanessa just said, “We thought someone had broken into our house, we were scared out of our minds for days Vanessa!”

 

 

Vanessa remembers Seth mentioning how Richie and Kate thought they had been burgled but he had brushed it off as Richie’s over imagination and Kate being careless with her jewellery; she had to pretend to be interested in the facade for a whole week before he shut up about it. He’s looking at her in now, disbelief written all over his face, and they would save themselves all this run around if they just came clean and admitted wha they had done! The shirt and the locket should have been more then enough proof for them to stop lying but evidently it wasn’t, so Vanessa will just have to dig in deeper.

 

“What about the phone call, hmmm?” she seethes at the pair of them, “What about that, eh?!”

 

There’s no way they can weasel out this one; Vanessa knows what she heard, Kate begging for a quick fuck whilst dumb old Richie was off being a nuisance somewhere else.

 

“What phone call?” Seth sighs tiredly as he rubs his forehead, “Vanessa, you’re not even making any sense here!”

 

So he still wants to pretend like he has no idea what she’s talking about does he? Well Vanessa is about to spell it out for him; she’s not going to stand here and be made a fool out of whilst Kate plays up to her innocent Little Miss Virgin routine. 

 

“The one were you agreed to meet up for sex, you remember that one don’t you?” she hisses at Kate, who’s still trying to get her head around Vanessa stealing her locket, “The one where you decided to switch out those old granny panties of your’s and stick on those whorish looking ones?”

 

Kate looks at her in bewilderment, and it’s irritating Vanessa beyond belief. Why does everyone fall for her Disney Princess routine all the time?! It’s so fucking annoying when all she is, is a cheap, nasty little slut.  

 

“Vanessa, what the hell are you talking about?” Seth demands as he tries to get a handle on the situation, “What phone call? What fucking panties?!”

 

 

“I saw her!” Vanessa screams as she points her finger accusingly at Kate, “She changed her underwear when she went to meet you; that expensive lacy stuff she's got in her draw!”

 

Seth is still looking utterly confused but it seems like Vanessa’s words are starting to hit home for Kate and she unsticks her self from Richie’s side to come face to face with Vanessa. 

 

“Wait a minute,” she asks, shock written all over her face, “How do you even know what type of underwear I even own?! Where the hell even were you?!”

 

She’s looking at Vanessa like she’s the crazy one out of the bunch and even _Richie_ is giving her a staring at her like she’s something out of a horror movie. 

 

“I was under the fucking bed if you must know!” Vanessa spits back at her whilst Kate’s mouth hangs open in horror, “I saw you put on those whore panties you love so much.”

 

Apparently finding out that Vanessa had a ring side seat to all her sneaky, underhand dealings is too much for Kate and her face turns chalk white as she takes in what Vanessa just said.

 

“You broke into my house, snuck under the bed,” she asks carefully, as if she needs the whole thing spelled out for her, “ _And then you watched me change my underwear?”_

 

“Damn right I did,” Vanessa smirks at her, “Good job I did, other wise we wouldn't be here now and you would still be screwing my husband!”

 

“You’re deranged,” Kate whispers as she backs away from Vanessa, “You can’t hide under peoples beds and watch them undress!”

 

The other two seem to agree with her as Richie starts to pull Kate away, almost shielding her from Vanessa’s view, like she might take a run at the evil little troll and attack her. Richie should be on her side anyway! Not that she want’s any help from that weirdo, but he could at least be the little bit appreciative of all the trouble she’s gone to to prove his girlfriend isn't the nice little church mouse she pretends to be. She’s still smirking at Kate when Seth snatches up her bag from the table and gives her a look of deepest loathing.

 

“We need to leave,” he snaps at her as he shoves her purse at her and tries to push her towards the exit again, “Right now, go on go; before I say something I regret.” 

 

“I told you,” she tells him as she clobbers him over the head with her empty purse until he lets her go, “ _I’M NOT GOING ANYWHERE!”_

 

Being hit over the head with a heavy leather handbag so many times, is more then Seth can take and he staggers away from her, holding his head in his hands. Richie comes forward to help his brother out of harms way and Vanessa hurls her handbag straight at his head, getting even more enraged when he ducks and it crashes into the TV cabinet. 

 

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” Kate screeches as both Seth and Richie duck for cover near the couch, “WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!”

 

“Don’t you try and turn this back around on me,” Vanessa snarls at her, “I know what I saw! Why else would you change your fucking panties if nor for Seth?!”

 

Kate watches her for a minute or two, her eyes boring into Vanessa as she glares at her, before she replies; her expression cold as ice.

 

 

“For your information,” she replies coldly, her hands on her hips,“I got my period whilst I was out, and those were the only clean underwear I had left! So there, mystery solved Vanessa! Do you want my used tampons as well to add to you’re collection?”

 

“If you were on your period then why did you need to buy condoms then?” Vanessa fires back at her, “Come on Kate, make up another lie!”

 

“Because sometimes Richie and I like to do it when I’m on my period, ok?!” Kate bursts out, “It helps with the cramps!”

 

Next to her, Seth recoils in horror at all the talk of bodily fluids that’s being thrown around; especially ones that involve his brother and his brother’s girlfriend. 

 

“Period sex,” he mutters to himself before he looks over at Richie, who is staring determinedly at the floor, “Dude, that’s so gross.”

 

“Oh grow up Seth!” Kate snaps, as Seth visibly cringes at the word period, “Even your lunatic of a wife gets one!” 

 

Vanessa isn't about to let Kate off the hook that easy no matter how hard the other girl tries to wriggle free; she heard the entire exchange word for word.

 

“LIAR! I heard you talking to him,” she screams as she moves towards Kate, “About how you had to sneak out so Richie wouldn't see you!”

 

Kate is suddenly beginning to look a little flustered and Vanessa knows she hitting the right mark; there’s only so many lies Kate can tell before she slips herself up. Her eyes dart back over to Seth and Vanessa can almost feel them trying to communicate with each other. Probably trying to get their story straight before Vanessa can expose them any further. 

 

“We were discussing… something else,” Kate finishes lamely but she glances nervously at Richie who has been virtually silent as he watches the whole thing unfold, “But it had nothing to do with this insane idea of your’s that Seth and I are sleeping together!”

 

Is that the best she can do? Is that the best nasty little liar can come up with when faced with Vanessa exposing her sordid little secret to her precious Richie? If that’s all Kate can come up with, then she may as well just give in and admit that she’s been coercing Seth into sleeping with her.

 

“So what was so important that you couldn't tell Richie about hmmm?” Vanessa hisses as she squares up to Kate, “What was so important that you had to sneak away with my husband, in your slutty underwear and your box of condoms?”

 

Seth lets out an audible noise of embarrassment as if all this talk of condoms and trashy underwear is too much for him to handle; its not he hasn't seen Kate in all her glory anyway so Vanessa doesn't see my he’s moaning so much.

 

“Oh my god!” Kate groans exasperatedly as she holds her head in her hands, “The condoms were in my purse because I’d just thrown them in there after I’d brought them Vanessa, like any normal person would do!”

 

A likely story; nobody carts around an entire box of condoms unless they’re a hooker; it wouldn't surprise Vanessa if she found out that Kate spent her nights walking up and down the strip touting for business. 

 

“If you weren’t using them with Seth then why did you have them then?!” Vanessa demands, “Why did you need a whole box of them?”

 

She’s going to get Kate to admit her affair even if it pushes her to breaking point; Vanessa won’t be beaten by that insipid little midget.

 

“Because,” Kate snaps, her face going slightly red but there’s steel in her voice as she stands a little straighter, “Richie and I like to have sex. A lot if you must know! We had run out of condoms, so I brought a new packet; it’s hardly rocket science!”  

 

“That is far more information than I needed to hear,” Seth mutters as Richie’s pale skin flushes bright red.

 

“Well, why were they in Seth’s car then?” Vanessa growls, “If you’re fucking Richie as often as you say you are, then you would have taken them with you!”

 

“I don’t know,” Kate splutters as she throws her hands up, “Maybe they fell out of my purse or I just forgot to pick them up!”

 

Vanessa sneers at Kate as she stalks towards her; she must be pretty full of herself if she thinks that Vanessa is going to believe that pack of lies.

 

“You left them in there because you were screwing Seth, and you thought that nobody would find out!” she argues as Kate stands her ground against her, “Well you thought wrong, you jumped up little freak! I’ve got proof!” 

 

She flies over to the coffee table and digs around in her pile of evidence until she finds the two sealed freezer bags she’s looking for.

 

“See!” she yells as she shoves them under Seth’s nose, “You thought you were being clever but I know the truth!”

 

Seth takes the bag from her, shaking his head at as he does so, and puzzles over it, turning it this way and that tying to work out what it is.

 

“What is this supposed to be?” Seth queries as he squints at the tiny pice of foil in the bag, “Gum packet?”

 

He hands it over to Kate who takes it but looks just as confused as he does. In the end, Vanessa snatches the bag off her, rips it open and pulls out the tiny square of coloured foil.

 

“IT’S A FUCKING PIECE OF A CONDOM PACKET,” she screams, her eyes bulging with rage, “I FOUND IT IN THE BACK OF SETH’S CAR!”

 

“I have no idea what that even is!” Seth says defensively as he’s still trying to work out how that tiny piece of foil could be from a condom. Next to him, Kate starts to shift guiltily from side to side and Vanessa smiles triumphantly; maybe there was an ounce of compassion inside Kate after all.

 

“I might actually know why that’s there,” Kate mutters as she glances over at Richie who is still looking rather confused by the whole situation. He’s still not really said anything, but for all Vanessa knows he still could be trying to process the fact that she had hidden underneath his bed. 

 

“What?!” Seth cries as he turns to Kate accusingly, “How would you know anything about what’s in my car?”

 

Kate refuses to look at him and instead, creeps closer to Richie who’s still over by the couch.  

 

“Richie… remember… that trip to the beach?” she whispers at him and Richie’s eyes go round with realisation behind his glasses and he goes bright red.

 

“What happened at the fucking beach?” Seth demands as he looks from Kate to Richie, “Come on, one of you is going to have to own up sooner or later!”

 

He seems more interested in finding out if theres something wrong with his precious car, rather then getting back to the real issue of him and Kate confessing that they're sleeping together. Kate starts to talk but Richie irrupts her, clearly he’s trying to save her from making an even bigger fool of herself then she already has.

 

 

“Kate and I… well… we were driving out to the beach…and,” Richie mumbles, looking completely mortified that he’s having to say any of this, whilst Kate cringes with embarrassment next to him, “We kind of… spent some time together… on the backseat.”

 

“YOU HAD SEX IN MY CAR?” Seth yells after an extremely awkward awkward pause, “You two are paying for that to be dry cleaned!”

 

“Oh, like you’ve never done it!” Kate fires back at him, “So there you go Vanessa, the mystery of the condom packet is solved. What else have you got for us?”

 

The little witch is standing there smug as anything, god only knows why Richie covered up for her; he probably knows that Kate will be the only girl that he’ll ever be able to convince to have sex with him. 

 

“Hmm, you think you’re so smart don't you?” Vanessa mocks as Kate lets out a frustrated howl, “So you were sleeping with Richie were you? Just like you said you were this morning?”

 

“YES!” Kate bellows, “HOW MANY TIMES DO YOU NEED TO BE TOLD?!”

 

There’s colour in her cheeks and Vanessa can tell that she’s getting to Kate, chipping away at that carefully constructed portrait that she’s painted for herself; the sweet, innocent little preachers daughter. All she needs is to tip kate over the edge, then everyone will see what she’s really like. 

 

“SO HOW COME I FOUND THIS UPSTAIRS THEN!” Vanessa screams triumphantly as she waves a wad of tissue in Kate’s face, “HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THIS; YOU NASTY LITTLE BEAST!”

 

Kate backs away so one of Vanessa’s flailing hands doesn't catch her in the face but Seth isn't so easily put off as he comes closer to see what she’s holding; he’s been looking more and more pissed off by the whole charade as time went on.

 

“What the fuck even is that Vanessa?” Seth demands as she turns towards him, her face thunderous.

 

“OH LIKE YOU DON’T KNOW!” Vanessa screams at him and she’s gesticulating so wildly that the tissue goes flying through the air, freeing its contents, and landing directly on Seth’s forehead.

 

“What the… AGGGHHHH” Seth screams as the condom that Vanessa had liberated from Kate’s bin dangles in front of his eyes, “JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!”

 

He rips it off his face, gagging loudly, and throws it in whatever direction he can find as he scrubs at his face with his sleeve. 

 

“Is that… is that a condom?” Kate squeals at it lands near her foot, “WHERE DID YOU GET THAT?!”

 

Seth is still freaking out over the condom landing on his face so Vanessa takes the opportunity to get closer to Kate; she could drag the bitch right out into the street if she wanted to but Kate doesn't seem all that afraid of her anymore. 

 

“I FOUND IT IN THE FUCKING BIN,” Vanessa screams in her face, “BIT OF A COINCIDENCE SEEING AS YOU AND SETH WERE HERE, ALONE, FOR HOURS!”

 

“And I already told you; Richie and I had sex this morning!” Kate thunders as she gets right back in Vanessa’s face, “That’s were the condom came from!”

 

“Liar!” Vanessa snarls and she’s this close to slapping Kate, “It was you and Seth all along, not you and Richie!”

 

“Do you need a blow by blow account of what we did? Would that make you happy?” Kate asks sarcastically, “I can give you a list of positions if you want me to or how about how many times Richie made me cum?”

 

She’s goading Vanessa now, its obvious, and whatever Kate claims that Richie did to her would really be all the nasty stuff that she had been getting up to with Seth. Well, Vanessa is not going to fall for that cheap little trick, not when she has other ways of proving that Kate is nothing but a dirty little whore.

 

“Please do not mention Richie and the word cum in my presence ever again,” Seth begs Kate as he still scrubs desperately at his face with his shirt sleeve, “Eww; I’ve got my brothers fucking spunk all over me!”

 

“Oh, so you think that this is funny do you?” Vanessa spits as she rounds on Seth, “That this is all just a big laugh at my expense?!”

 

“No,” Seth grumbles as he continues to claw at his face like he’s a diseased animal, “I-”

 

Vanessa ignores him and continues to vent her frustrations as Kate and Richie watch on from the reality safety of the couch.

 

“Let’s make Vanessa look like the unreasonable cow, so you can go back to screwing that cheap little whore!” she snarls at Seth who is looking increasingly irritated by her wild behaviour, “That’s what you want, isn't it?!”

 

“For the last time,” Seth explains, in a way that clearly means he thinks she’s stupid, “ _I AM NOT SLEEPING WITH KATE!_ ”

 

Vanessa stares at him, shaking her head in disappointment at what her husband has become; the Seth Gecko she knows would never treat her like this. Clearly Kate had more of a hold over him than she had previously thought. There’s a remedy for that though, she thinks; the truth! Pulling her phone out she pulls up the picture she snapped of Seth and Kate’s text exchange and reads it out loud;

 

**_Cool; I’ll wait down the street._ **

 

**I’ll be on the corner of West Rider, make sure nobody see’s you.**

 

**_I know what I’m doing Seth!_ **

 

**We almost got caught last time, you need to be more discreet.**

 

**_I can’t help it, I can’t wait to get waffles!_ **

 

**_Send me a picture!_ **

 

**Later, theres people here.**

 

**FYI your shirt and the condoms are still in my trunk.**

Kate’s mouth falls open and she gasps in shock as Vanessa gets to the end of her dirty little exchange with Seth.

 

“How did you get that?” she yells frantically, “How on earth did you get that off my phone; I deleted all the messages!”

 

“Because you’re a stupid idiot that doesn't know how to cover her tracks!” Vanessa informs her maliciously, “Now are you going to admit that you’re nothing more than a dirty little cheat?”

 

“NO!” Kate yells at her, “BECAUSE I’M NOT CHEATING ON ANYONE!” 

 

“This has gone to far now Vanessa,” Seth cuts in and he looks absolutely furious, “You can’t go around breaking into people houses and stealing shit. Now drop it so we can leave.”

 

Vanessa isn't about to drop anything; not when she’s got them all right where she wants them. She smiles at Seth as re-reads one of the lines from the text exchange;

 

 “I can’t help it, I can’t wait to get waffles!” she repeats and Seth’s face falters a little and she knows exactly what’s running through his head, “Isn’t that the phrase you use, “getting waffles”, when you used to sleep around with all those trashy girls?”

 

“Yeah,” Seth admits grudgingly, “But-”

 

“Eww,” Kate cuts in as she turns her nose up, “That’s what that means?”

 

She looks a little horrified; maybe she doesn't know about all the girls Seth has been with before her, and there have been a _lot._ Kate probably had some grand scheme of how she thought she could change Seth into being her perfect little pet, or Seth had fed her some lie that he’s only ever been with Vanessa to lure her into bed. 

 

“Oh don't act all innocent,” Vanessa snaps as Kate still looks a little repulsed, “ What else could it mean?”

 

“Well it fucking doesn't mean that this time!” Seth burst out, “We were talking about-”

 

Kate, ever the spotlight stealer, jumps in and cuts him off before he even has a chance to finish whatever he was going to say; she just can’t seem to realise that Seth doesn't want her anymore and is begging for a way out of this mess.

 

“Seth!” she interrupts quickly as she glances over at Richie, “Don’t let her spoil it!” 

 

Annoyingly, Seth instantly shuts up and Vanessa feels her patience start to run dangerously thin. To top it all off, Kate and Seth do their little eye catching thing again, clearly unrepentant that their respective partners are still in the same room as them. 

 

“Me spoil it?!” she hisses incredulously, as Kate has the audacity to look at Seth again; right under Vanessa’s nose no less, “You're the one whose spoiling everything by being a home wrecker, you dirty little beast!”

 

Kate’s face has gone brought red and she looks so wound up by Vanessa simply telling her some home truths that it’s almost funny. She’s huffing and puffing away like a steam engine, obviously desperately trying to dig her way out of this particular hole she’s got herself into.

 

“HOW MANY TIMES,” she yells, her hands balled up into fists, “I’M.NOT.SLEEPING.WITH.SETH!!”

 

Vanessa smirks at her; if that’s the way Kate wants to play it then fine, so be it. Kate must be a glutton for punishment because she seems to enjoy Vanessa utterly humiliating her in front of everyone. 

 

“Hmmm,” Vanessa snorts in disbelief, “Nice try Kate but we all heard the message; you were begging Seth to send you a naked picture of himself!”

 

She’s getting that psychotic look of disbelief again and Vanessa is wondering what Kate will come up with this time; what lie she’ll concoct just so she can keep on messing about with Seth.

 

“For the last time,” Kate says through gritted teeth, “I wasn't asking for a picture of Seth!”

 

“Yes you _were_! You wanted a picture of his dick so you could rub yourself off to it,” she spits as everyone recoils at the vulgarity of her words, “Like the cheap little whore you are. God knows Richie isn't doing it for you!”

 

Kate looks livid that Vanessa would dare to speculate on whatever goes on between the sheets with her and that oddball Richie; which clearly isn't a lot if she needs to pick up Seth for sloppy seconds. 

 

“Are you deaf?!” Kate yells, her face going even redder as her frustration at being caught out boils over, “I wasn't asking Seth for any dick pictures or whatever else you’ve made up in your head!”

 

They must think that Vanessa is an idiot because it was plain as day what Kate was up to; why Seth wasn’t just owning up to it was another mystery. She was almost one hundred percent certain that Seth hadn't indulged the little creep, which was obviously why Kate had so many naked pictures of herself. Clearly she must have thought that if she bombarded Seth with those awful pictures of her spindly body then he would come running straight to her.

 

“I think we all know that it’s Richie that makes stuff up in his head!” Vanessa lashes out and the leader of the Richie Gecko Defence Squad, Seth, leaps in to defend poor befuddled Richie. 

 

“That’s too far, Vanessa!” he informs her and he looks even more pissed of then ever, like he had any right to be angry with her, “Knock it off, you’ve had you’re fun now lets go!” 

 

Vanessa ignores him and sets her sights on Kate again; the little harlot is beginning to look worried now. The picture has rattled her and Vanessa is already plotting a way of dragging Kate even further down, one where she can’t lie her way out of it.

 

“What else would you want a picture of? she demands, “Come on Kate; it’s all their in black and white for us all to see!”

 

She can almost see Kate’s brain working overtime as she tries to think up some lame excuse. Vanessa waits silently, ignoring Seth’s repeated insistence that they need to leave. She’s not going anywhere; not whist the fun is just about to begin. 

 

“It's got nothing to do with you!” Kate eventually replies primly, “What Seth and I discuss is nome of your business!” 

 

Vanessa draws back, absolutely livid that the little witch would _dare_ to try and tell her that what Seth discusses outside of their marriage has nothing to do with her. That’s probably what she’s been telling Seth all along, that Vanessa doesn't matter and that he should ditch her in favour of Kate. What a nasty little beast that girl is. 

 

“It is my business when your text my husband naked pictures of yourself!” Vanessa counters, her rage simmering to the top again, “EVERYTHING TO DO WITH SETH IS MY BUSINESS!” 

 

“I WASN’T SENDING HIM NAKED PICTURES!!” Kate screams out in irritation but Vanessa just talks over her.

 

“STOP LYING TO ME!” she snarls as she gets in Kate’s face again, almost to the point of hitting her, “ You've been caught now just admit it!

 

Kate stares at her for a minute or two, like she can’t even begin to figure out what to say, before she heaves a great exhausted sigh and turns to Seth, who had been standing protectively near Richie the entire time. 

 

“This is insane, this absolutely insane,” Kate say’s somewhat hysterically to him and he seems to be wordlessly agreeing with her, “Just get her out Seth, get her out so Richie can enjoy the rest of his birthday in peace!” 

 

Vanessa is ready for them this time as she doges Seth before he’s even made a step towards her and runs round the coffee table, snatching up her phone as she goes.

 

“This is ridiculous!” Seth is muttering as he tires to grab her again but Vanessa clambers over the small table, sending her evidence bags scattered all over the floor, and ends up next to Kate; just where she wanted to be.

 

“So you didn't send him any pictures did you? none at all?” she asks as Seth tries to pull her away, “GET OFF ME SETH!”

 

“FOR THE LAST TIME; NO!!” Kate cries as Seth is still trying to drag Vanessa away.

 

“She’s-already-told-you,” he pants as he grapples with Vanessa, who is trying to kick him away, “SHE-DIDN’T-SEND-ME-ANY-FUCKING-PICTURES!”

 

“LIARS, LIARS ALL OF YOU!” Vanessa screams as she manages to finally throw Seth off, pulling out her phone and shoving it at him, “WHY DOES SHE HAVE THIS THEN?”

 

Seth lets out a frustrated groan, clearly realising that there’s not going to be an easy way out of this for him, but he does stop trying to manhandle her out of the living room. He’s shaking his head at her now, like he’s not even sure who she even is anymore; clearly Kate had done a lot more damage then Vanessa had previously thought.

 

“Fine,” Seth mutters as he takes the phone from Vanessa and looks down at the screen, “What am I supposed to be looking at…. AGHHHH!”

 

Seth practically throws the phone away from him in horror, still yelling in shock, whilst Kate and Richie can only look on in confusion. Vanessa folds her arms across and grins smugly at the little display before her, Kate frantically trying to find out what’s wrong with Seth whilst Richie has the peace of mind, for once, to pick up the dropped phone.

 

“WHAT? WHAT IS IT?” Kate is yelling as Seth cringes away from her and shields his eyes from the phone like he’s seen something awful.

 

“Oh my god!” he mutters wildly, “Oh my god, please tell me I did not just see that?!”

 

“What is happening?!” Kate squawks, seemingly to everyone, as Seth still has his eyes shut tight to try and block out the image he’s just seen, “Someone tell me what’s going on!” 

 

 

“Oh like you don’t know!” Vanessa hisses as she shoves Kate hard in the shoulder, “You sent it to him you dirty little slut!”

 

Out of the corner of her eye, she see’s Richie eyes go wide underneath his glasses as he looks down at her phone. Vanessa gives him a smug little grin as he looks up at he, his expression hard to read as she’s only ever really known him to be dosed up on medication. If Vanessa had to guess though, she would say he looked pretty angry with her right now. Kate has also spotted that Richie has the phone, she’s given up trying to as Seth whats wrong, and she runs over to him and tries to take it from him.

 

“Richie, what is it?” she asks, her eyes big and wide as she looks up at him, “What’s on the phone?!”

 

He looks down at her, almost like he feels sorry for her, but he doesn't hand the phone over to her. Vanessa doesn't understand why he’s being so protective over her; the dirty little troll has just been caught sending naked pictures to his brother? Why bother to protect her after that?

 

“I don’t think you need to see it Kate,” Richie tells her, as he holds the phone out of reach, “It’s just Vanessa being spiteful.”

 

Vanessa shoots him a nasty look, he really is an idiot if he thinks that Kate is anything but a lying, desperate little monsters after all the proof Vanessa has shown him; its right under his nose for gods sake! Kate doesn't seem like she’s about to let this go either and she demands that he hands over Vanessa’s phone. 

 

“Richard!” she cries, almost stomping her feet at the same time, as she holds her hand out again, “Give me the phone!”

 

Reluctantly, he hands it over and it only takes a few moments before Kate lets out a loud gasp of shock and her face goes bright red with embarrassment. 

 

“OH MY GOD,” she screams as she looks down a picture of herself laying splayed out on her bed, completely naked, with one hand playing with her breast and the other thankfully covering her vagina.

 

There’s tears in her eyes now, not at being caught out like Vanessa would have expected, but at everyone seeing her slutty little photoshoot. She’s still in a complete state of shock and Vanessa takes the opportunity to snatch the phone out of her hands before anyone can stop her. 

 

“Where did you get that?!” Kate cries at Vanessa, angrily brushing away her tears as Vanessa just laughs at her.

 

“Does it matter?” she sneers, “The point is that you took it to send to Seth, along with all the other whorish pictures you took of yourself!”

 

“VANEESA!” Seth yells loudly before anyone else can start screaming at each other, “KATE NEVER SENT THAT TO ME! SHE SENT IT TO RICHIE FUCKING MONTHS AGO!”

 

There’s an awkward silence as everyone turns towards at him, Kate still can’t bring herself to look at him in the face though.

 

“How do you know that?” Vanessa and Richie both ask at them same time.

 

Seth seems to have given up expecting a reasonable conversation from Vanessa and instead he addresses his brother; Kate is still mortified by the whole thing and tries to hide her shame behind Richie. Vanessa really should have used one of the ones where Kate was fully nude with her legs spread and everything on display. 

 

“Remember when we went to Dallas with Uncle Eddie to pick up some parts for the shop?” Seth asks Richie, “When you got sick after he made us that weird shrimp stuff?”

 

“Yes,” Richie says, as his hand automatically clutches his stomach, “I’m pretty sure it wasn't shrimp either.” 

 

Seth nods in agreement before he goes on with his little story, why he’s making all this up just to cover for Kate, Vanessa hasn't quite figured out yet. The rot inside Kate must have spread in deeply to Seth if he’s willing to go to these lengths just to protect her. 

 

“Well, I was playing Candy Crush on you’re phone whilst you were in the shower and it just sort of popped up, I shut it off once I realised it was Princess over there in her birthday suit” Seth explains as Kate flushes bright red, before adding, “You guys really need to sort your sext game out.”

 

“Wait a second,” Richie says angrily and Vanessa is certain that even he doesn't believe that dumb story, “That’s why my score is so low? Because you’ve been playing on it?!”

 

“Hey!” Seth fires back at him, “I got you passed those fucking jelly mountains didn't I?”

 

“Yes, but only by cheating so it doesn't count!” Richie argues before muttering, “I could have worked that out my self…”

 

“Well you didn't did you?” Seth jeers at him, “Eddie was about to toss your ass outta that car because you wouldn't shut up about it.”

 

“Well Eddie told _me_ that he was so annoyed by your whining that there was no cable TV in the motel,” Richie snaps back at Seth, “That he was going to leave _you_ behind in Dallas!” 

 

“Well what was I supposed to do? You had “gone to bed early”, which we now all know was because you were getting some phone action with Little Miss Thing over there,” Seth snaps as Richie cheeks turn red, “Eddie was out with his boring bowling buddies, so that just left me with nothing to do!”

 

“I’m pretty sure you just drank the whole night,” Richie deadpans as Seth just rolls his eyes at him, “Because I seem to remember you waking me up at 3 AM, singing the Five Dollar Foot Long Song!”

 

“Well, you wouldn't have been woken up,” Seth argues, “If you had been a nice brother and come drinking with me would you?!”

 

They bicker back and forth, going wildly off topic and Vanessa feels like this is all sort of some preplanned to shtick to try and throw her off the scent or Seth has lied to Richie and told him that Vanessa has been making stuff up about him and Kate. It wouldn't surprise her, Richie is so easily persuaded to do anything, she found that out when she was living with him and would things like food hostage until he did what she wanted. Kate has joined in the bickering now, scolding Seth for looking at her picture in his made up story or perhaps the story was true and Kate knew that Seth would see it? Vanessa’s mind flip flops between the two explanations so much that she can’t decided for herself which is the real version. The back and forth has moved onto something else as equally pointless so Vanessa decided to put a stop to it once and for all. Screwing through her phone she opens up and video she had secreted away and presses play; turning the volume up over the din.

 

_“Richie… harder..”_

 

“… that was three years ago and I said sorry like a million times Richie!”

 

_“Richie…. baby… harder…”_

 

“… still have the scar from that and when you left me with that homeless man so you could…”

 

_“Richie… I’m gonna cum… ohhhh…”_

 

“He was not homeless, he was - wait whats that noise?”

 

They all stop as Kate’s breathy moans ring out; all of them looking around in confusion until Seth spots Vanessa with her phone in her hand, the video plain for anyone to see. 

 

“What the…” he mutters as Vanessa smiles triumphantly at him as Richie’s ecstatic moaning is coupled with Kate’s.

 

Kate has gone beet red as she hears her own voice played back to her and she runs straight at Vanessa, grappling with her over for the phone as Vanessa holds it high out of reach.

 

“TURN IT OFF!” she screams, her face almost purple with humiliation as the sounds of her and Richie’s sexual groaning fills the air.

 

“I’m sure daddy would love to know what his cheap whore of a daughter gets up to,” Vanessa snarls as she dangles the phone above Kate’s head and makes her jump up for it like a dog, “I bet daddy would love to see how much time you spend on your knees, it’s just unfortunate thats its not due to praying!”

 

Kate suddenly busts into big, pathetic tears and Vanessa can’t help but laugh at her as she turns the volume up loader. It does the job and Kate doesn't even try and take the phone from her, she just stands there whining like a pathetic baby. Vanessa is about to turn the volume up as high as it can go when the phone is suddenly pulled out of her hand and she looks around to find Richie standing behind her.

 

“Thats mine!” she spits at him as she tries to snatch it back, but Richie is too tall for her and he shuts the video off and deletes it along with the picture of Kate. 

 

“That’s enough Vanessa.” Richie says calmly as he hands the phone back to her, “I really think it’s time for you to go now.”

 

Before she can respond, Kate comes flying towards her like a woman possessed.

 

“YOU WERE IN OUR HOUSE?!” she screeches as Richie tries to stop her from attacking Vanessa, “You were in our house watching us have sex like some dirty pervert?!”

 

“It’s not your house! It should have been mine!” Vanessa screams back at her just as Kate tries to break free from Richie, “You just wanted to get your claws into Seth so you could take it!”

 

Vanessa hadn't wanted to bring the house stuff up just yet but Kate hadn't given her much of a choice. She needed them gone so she and Seth could get on with their lives but she wouldn't have put it past Kate to somehow get her name put on the deeds or get Seth to sign some portion of the Eddie’s estate over to her. They continue screaming back and forth at each other and Vanessa is to distract to notice Seth come up behind her until its too late and he’s dragging her away towards the door. 

 

“Ok we’ve all had a lot of fun on Vanessa magical mystery tour,” he says as he pulls her towards the doorway but the wrist, “But I think its time we all calmed down and Vanessa and I can leave.”

 

“Oh you’d like that wouldn't you?” Vanessa snarls as she aims a kick at him, “Blame it all on me so you continue fucking her!”

 

“For the last fucking time,” Seth bellows, for what seems like the millionth time, “I'm not sleeping with Kate!”

 

“You’re just as bad as her!” Vanessa screeches as she kicks him hard in the shin, forcing him to let her go as he hobbles about in pain.

 

She turns back towards Kate, intending to punch or just do something other then have to stand here and be made out to be the unreasonable one whilst Kate gets away with it. Kate must somehow realises what she’s thinking because she whips out her phone from her pocket just as Vanessa lets to an angry bellow. 

 

“That’s it; I’m calling the cops!” Kate says as she starts typing the numbers into her phone, “I’m not having some weirdo sneaking in watching me have sex or steal my stuff!”

 

“Wait, Kate,” Seth says desperately as he hobbles towards her, “We don’t need to get the cops involved do we? Vanessa is just a little wound up is all.”

 

 

“ _Seth_ ,” Kate says incredulously as she redials the number, “She broke into our house and dug though my trash like some starving racoon. She took a video of us having sex for gods sake! What more do you need?!”

 

“I know but-” it’s too late; the operator has already picked up but before Kate can even say hello, Vanessa rams Seth out of the way with her elbow, grabs Kate’s phone off her and smashes it again the wall.

 

The tension in the room is palatable as Kate, Seth and Richie all look at Vanessa like she has finally lost the plot as she gathers up the fallen receipts that she had kept. Digging her way through them frantically she finds the ones from when Seth and Kate had their little dinner date at that “Zolo’s Dinner” or whatever it’s called. 

 

“Explain these to me then!” she hisses at him as she slams them into his chest and gets right up in his face, “Explain what you were doing with that horrid little troll when you said you were at work!”

 

Seth snatches the receipts out of her hand, and starts to look through them. Nothing about his expression suggests that he thinks he’s been caught; in fact he merely looks annoyed as he finally selects one and holds it up for her to see.

 

 

“ _This_ ,” he says as he tosses the receipt at her, “Was from when we got together to plan Richie’s birthday,” he picks up another and holds it out to her as well, “ _This_ is from when we drove to Walmart to get all the party crap,” he throws that one at her as well before he goes for the last one, “ _This_ is when we to pick up Richie’s present. _Her_ shirt is in my car because it got dirty, Kate has the code to _my_ office because that’s where we kept Richie’s present and there's extra large condoms in her purse _because Richie has a fucking bigger dick than I do_! There; now are you satisfied?!”

 

He throws his hands up at the end of his speech and walks away from her, running his hands through his hair in frustration. Vanessa doesn't believe one bit of it though; if he had brought Richie a present, she would never of heard the end of it. Seth had once driven all the way to Oklahoma just get Richie some dumb book her wanted, apparently there weren't enough books for him to read in the hospital, and Vanessa had had to listen to weeks worth of crap about how excited Richie would be. 

 

“So were’s this present then?” she demands as Kate is once again starting to look fidgety, “Where’s this present that was so important that you haven't given it to Richie yet?”

 

“Richie’s present has nothing to do with you!” Kate yells at her and she looks really angry now, probably because Vanessa kept picking apart her lies, “You’ve already spoiled his birthday, I’m not letting you ruin that as well!”

 

“SHUT UP, YOU LITTLE FREAK!” Vanessa roars at her, “THERE IS NO PRESENT! YOU JUST COULDN'T KEEP YOUR LEGS SHUT COULD YOU?!” 

 

“FOR THE LAST FUCKING TIME WE ARE NOT SLEEPING TOGETHER!” Seth roars at her just as Kate jumps in as well and all three of them are screaming in each others faces; accusations flying all over the place. Seth is almost shaking Vanessa by the shoulders as he tries to make her understand, as she screams back at him and Kate tries to make her voice heard.

 

“THAT’S ENOUGH, ALL OF YOU!” 

 

All three of them stop mid way through their argument to find Richie staring at them, like he can’t believe they've all descended down to this level. Seth abandons the two women and runs over to his brother, taking him by the arms as he tries to convince Richie that he’s the innocent one in all of this. Vanessa listens carefully to see if she can detect any slip ups in his story whist Kate is still looking murderously at her.

 

“Buddy,” Seth says desperately as he takes hold of his brother, “Vanessa is wrong, I’m not sleeping with Kate. I would _never_ do that you, you know I wouldn’t. Please say you believe me!”

 

“Don’t,” Richie says quietly and for a split second Vanessa thinks she’s finally gotten through to him, but then he goes on to say; “You don't have to apologise for her.”

 

Both Seth and Kate look received that he believes their lies and Vanessa shoves Kate out of the way and storms up to him. Richie might be nuts and on enough medication to sink a battle ship but she didn't think that even he would be that desperate to cling onto his simpering little girlfriend. 

 

“Apologise for me!” she snarls at him, “How dare you, you fucking little retard! Maybe if you weren't so fucked up in the head, Seth and I could actually have a marriage instead of having to look after you all the time!”

 

She’s got her hand raised to slap him but Seth is suddenly next to her, pulling her away and shaking her roughly by the arm. 

 

“Stop talking to him like that!” he yells at her, “How many times do I need to fucking tell you to leave him alone?!”

 

“Don't tell me to stop!” Vanessa shouts at him as she throws him off, “It's true and you know it. We never had a chance because of him!”

 

Seth puffs himself up like he always does when he’s preparing for an argument but before he can do or say anything; Richie is at his side again.

 

“Vanessa, we’ve tried to include you in this family, even when you say mean things to people or are rude to everyone,” he tells her, in an entirely too reasonable voice for someone so messed up in the head, “Seth isn't cheating on you, I’m sorry that you’ve spent all this time working yourself up over it but he’s not sleeping with Kate.”

 

He’s being so calm and _nice_ to her that Vanessa is already wishing she could beat the crap out of him right then and there like she had always wanted to. Where does he get off brushing aside everything she had so painstakingly found out? He’s till going on Vanessa is forced to wait until he’s finished stringing together whatever thoughts that mess of a brain has created.    

 

“Now, if you are willing to apologise to both Kate and Seth,” Richie says to her, “I would be happy to let you stay and we can carry on with our family evening.”

 

Family?! What fucking family? Vanessa is beyond livid that he would expect her to apologise for her behaviour when it’s his fault they’re all in this mess in the first place!

 

“You’re so fucking stupid! Is all that medication fucking with your brain?” she spits at him before she points over at Seth and Kate, “They’re screwing each other!”

 

“I’m not going to sit here and watch you hurt Seth, if you loved him like you say you do then you’d know he’d had enough of that growing up,” Richie fires back and her and Vanessa has to admit that he’s starting to look pissed off with her now, even with that calm demeanour of his, “So I’ll say it again; say you’re sorry and we can carry on.” 

 

“Don’t you dare ask _me_ to apologise!” Vanessa yells at him, “You should be thanking me for exposing what a dirty little whore your girlfriend really is!”

 

“Could you please stop calling her names like that!” Richie snaps at her, “Kate has been more than nice to you, even when you called her names and say terrible things to me.”

 

“She’s a whore if I say she’s a whore!” Vanessa bites back, “I’ve got enough evidence to prove that!”

 

Richie’s eyes roam over her like an x Ray, like he’s looking for something, and seemingly he finds it as his expression softens and he inexplicably smiles at her. He must be completely off his rocker if he thinks that Vanessa want’s him to act all nicey, nicey with her; she’d rather die than have Richie Gecko feel sorry for her! 

 

“I know what you’re going though Vanessa,” he tells her, sounding a lot more kinder then he did before, “Burt explained all this to me when I fist got sick; it’s called abnormal thinking.”

 

Burt is the ridiculously over priced therapist that Richie started going to after he left the hospital; he looks like a reject from an eighties metal band and is surrounded by a constant fog of dope smoke. What on earth that has got to do with Vanessa is anyone guess. Abnormal thinking? Vanessa is the only one out of this bunch that _is_ thinking clearly! Richie is still wittering on, sounding like the poor mans version of Dr Phil, whilst he tries to explain to Vanessa what ever rubbish it is that he’s talking about.

 

 

“If you suddenly hear a voice telling you that your neighbour is Satan, you don't go "Well, golly gee, time to kill him with a screwdriver, I guess." You'll fight it and disbelieve it, until you start seeing Satan in everything your neighbour does.” 

 

Richie,” Seth buts in suddenly as he takes Richie by the arm, looking at him desperately, “Please tell me you do not think your neighbour is satan!”

 

Even Kate is starting to look worried now and it wouldn't surprise Vanessa to learn that Kate had been using Richie’s mental health against to him, so she could have Seth all to herself; its what she would have done.

 

 

“No!” Richie grumbles, as if Seth being ridiculous, blowing aside the fact that he spent five years in a mental hospital because he thought _snake vampires_ were after him, “I’m just using it as an example!”

 

“Oh,” Seth says sarcastically as he lets go of Richie and breaths a sigh of relief, “Well, next time be more specific!” 

 

Richie just rolls his eyes at him and turns back to Vanessa, looking at her in a calm and rational way that is making her want to explode with rage; she’s not sure what game he’s playing here. Its probably just some way to make fun of her or make himself sound even more pompous and boffin like than he normally does. 

 

“By the time you confront him, you have tons of evidence,” Richie continues as he gestures to all of Vanessa’s freezer bags, “The evidence doesn't make sense to anyone else, but your brain makes it make sense to you. So when your neighbour ignores your hello, it's clearly because he's Satan and not because he didn't hear you. That’s what Vanessa has been doing when she’s been following you about, it makes perfect sense!”

 

“Oh yeah, perfect sense!” Seth says sarcastically as he shakes his head, “Richie this is nothing like what you had!”

 

Vanessa watching them talk about her, wildly thinking that maybe Richie knew all along and that they're having some sort of three way relationship. It would be just the sort of fucked up and creepy thing that Richie would do, but why would Seth go along with it? Kate is giving her a filthy look behind Richie’s back and Vanessa glares at her, her question answered. The little troll probably thinks she’s gotten away with it, that she’s succeed in making Vanessa look unhinged and now nobody will believe her. More fool Richie if he wants to pretend like nothing is happening, but Vanessa will pry Seth away from Kate even if it kills her. Richie is still talking to her, some rubbish about something he learnt in therapy, like she’s even interested in what that whack job has to say.

 

“My delusion that the mailman was a snake vampire? How could I disprove that? They would say that they weren't snake vampires, but that’s _exactly what a snake vampire would say._ Eventually I got over it by ignoring,” he explains carefully to her, like it has any relevance what so ever, “My thought process went something like: “If he _is_ a snake vampire and I blow his cover, he might turn _me_ into one. If he’s _not_ a snake vampire, he’ll get upset that we’re having this argument. Again. If I act normal until the snake vampire leaves, I’ll be fine. The only way to fight your delusions is to ignore them.” 

 

He’s looking at Vanessa like he’s just bestowed upon her some valuable piece of information or that they're somehow _similar._ Ugh, the very thought of having anything in common with Richie is making her blood boil. 

 

“You think I’m the crazy one out of the lot of us?” Vanessa asks incredulously as she laughs out loud, “You think _I’m crazy?!”_

 

“Actually Vanessa,” Richie says, sounding slightly annoyed, “We don’t use the C word; it’s demoralising and demeaning to people who just have an illness that you can’t see.”

 

Vanessa has had enough of this, and so has Kate apparently because she scurries up to Richie’s side and takes him by the hand. 

 

“Richard!” she says as she pulls him away, like she’s worried some of Vanessa’s crazy might rub off on him, “She’s not sick; she’s just a terrible person!”

 

“How dare you call me that!” Vanessa hisses as she stops Kate from pulling Richie away, “When you’ve the one thats been creeping around with my husband!”

 

“For the last time,” Kate snaps as she tries to shove Vanessa away from her, “I’m not sleeping with Seth!”

 

“Oh that’s what you would say, isn't it?!” Vanessa snarls, just as Richie decides to interject some more of his mental health jargon. 

 

“See, thats exactly my point! “ he pipes up as Kate continues to try and pull him away, “You can’t reason with a delusion Vanessa, you just have to ignore it!”

 

“Shut up!” Vanessa demands but Richie is still looking at her like she’s his new pet project and he can help her for some unknown reason. He gently nudges Kate to one side as he takes hold of Vanessa’s hand. 

 

“Vanessa,” he says seriously, “If you feel like your having trouble with your mental health I’d be happy to-”

 

“I SAID SHUT UP!” Vanessa screams out as she rips her hand away from him, “SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU LUNATIC!”

 

Then she slaps him around the face as hard as she can, so hard in fact that his glasses go flying off. Chaos is the only thing that would describe the aftermath of her actions, as Seth starts yelling at her full in the face.

 

“DON’T YOU _EVER_ DO THAT AGAIN!!” he bellows and for one moment she thinks he might actually hit her, but he doesn't even manage to move more than an inch. 

 

Roaring like an angry rhino, Kate comes charging towards her, knocking Seth out of the way entirely, as she lunges for Vanessa. Her arm is drawn back and her hand scrunched up into a tiny fist and Vanessa braces herself for impact, she’d love to knock Kate down on her ass, but the punch doesn't come. Holding Kate back the arm is Richie; there’s a massive red mark on his cheek and Vanessa smiles smugly to herself, she’s been wanting to do that for years. Slipping out of striking range, she watches as Richie and Kate tussle with each other and as soon as Kate clocks Richie’s cheek, she lets out an angry stream of curses at Vanessa. So much for the Preachers daughter. 

 

“Richie, let me go!” Kate rages, as she tries to pull herself free as Vanessa taunts her.

 

Seth is still struggling to his feet, Kate had knocked him face fist into the couch, and he is of no use to anyone at that moment.

 

“Kate,” Richie asserted, as he takes hold of her by both shoulders and turns her to face him, “You can’t hit an unstable person! That’s not right.”

 

“Richie, she fucking slapped you!” Kate thunders as she reaches up to touch his injured cheek, “I’m not to going to stand here and let her do that to you!”

 

She tries to break free again when Vanessa gives her a sarcastic little wave but Richie holds her firmly in place.

 

“I know, but what if it was me?” he asks her and her expression softens, as if the thought of someone hitting her crazy boyfriend is too much for her, “What if I was unwell again and someone hit me? Please Kate, she needs help!”

 

“I’M NOT CRAZY,” Vanessa explodes as she stares at them all, “YOU FUCKING PSYCHOPATH!”

 

Nobody seems to be paying her outburst any attention as Richie holds his injured face and Seth is still struggling to free himself from the couch. Kate just give’s her a look of deepest loathing as she goes to fetch Richie’s glasses from the other side of the room.

 

“She needs to leave,” Kate orders Seth, who has managed to stagger to his feet, “She needs to leave right now or I’m gonna throw her ass out myself!”

 

Seth nods at her as he sits himself down on the couch, breathing heavily though his nose like he had just run  very long race. 

 

“I meant what I said Vanessa; If you feel like your having mental health difficulties then I’d be glad to help you,” Richie tells her as Kate helps him put his glasses back on, “You can come to one of my group meetings if you like. We get cookies on Thursdays!”

 

“Richard!” Seth thunders from his spot on the couch, “She just hit you round the face; I don’t think she wants to be best buddies with you!”

 

“I’m just trying to help,” Richie says defensively, ”I don’t want her to end up in a hospital like I did; even if she is mean!”

 

“That’s not the same thing buddy!” Seth counters as he starts to get up, “And you only ended up in the hospital because I was too selfish to get you help sooner.”

 

“That’s not true,” Richie objects before adding, “What if Vanessa has an undiagnosed mental problem?”

 

“I’M NOTHING LIKE YOU,” Vanessa screams at Richie, tired of being compared to someone who thought that tentacle people in the freezer isle were talking to him, YOU STUPID FREAK!”

 

Enraged by the thought that she is anything like Richie, Vanessa pulls back her hand to slap him again, only to be stopped by Seth this time, as he catches her by the wrist.

 

“WHAT - THE - FUCK - DO - YOU - THINK - YOU - ARE - DOING?” he pants as he tries to wrestle her away from Richie.

 

“AGHHHH,” Vanessa screams as Seth wraps both his arms around her waist and drags her away into the corner, battering him on the back with her fists as she goes,  “THIS IS ALL THAT LITTLE BITCHES FAULT!”

 

She tries to break free again as Kate walks past them on her way to the kitchen, but Seth manages to stop her as he uses his own body to block her path.

 

“So you hit my brother because you think I’m having an affair?” Seth asks incredulously as he shoves her back into the corner, “For christ sake Vanessa!”

 

Kate has returned from the kitchen with an ice pack and she give’s Vanessa a death glare as she strides past on her way over to Richie and holds it gently to his cheek.

 

“Oh so are we all going to forget the time Richie beat the crap out of you when he was having one of his little fantasy episodes? Vanessa snarls at Seth as he tries to hold her in place, “I should have given him a slap back then as well.”

 

Richie’s face falters a little and he has the good grace to look ashamed of his past actions; Seth’s eye had been black for weeks and ruined Vanessa’s holiday photos.  

 

“Oh for fuck sake Vanessa, it was barely one punch and it was only because I spooked him when he thought the mailman was one of those tentacle monster things!” Seth corrected as he still struggles against Vanessa’s raging anger, “Now stop all this shit!”

 

 

“Technically they were actually demons from the ancient realm of Xibalba,” Richie chips in, apparently he can’t help being a know it all, “Not tentacle monsters, which I now know are not, in-fact, real.”

 

“ _Really_?” Seth says exasperatedly as he looks at his brother, “That’s what your worried about here?”

 

“Burt says I’m not supposed to disregard any factor of the delusion!” Richie says defensively, “That’s a good tip as well Vanessa, if you’re interested.”

 

“That is true Seth,” Kate agrees as she holds the ice pack over Richie’s cheek, “Burt does say that.”

 

“Ok, back to-” Seth begins as he turns back to his wife but Vanessa can’t handle the fact that everyone is taking advice from crazy old Richie. 

 

“Why are you defending him? Why are you pretending like thats normal?” she demands of Seth, “I _told_ you he shouldn't have been let out of that hospital and you knew I was right! But oh no, precious Richie had to have his way regardless of what the rest of us wanted.”

 

Richie’s calm demeanour falters somewhat and he starts to look upset, like his worst fears have come true and he was just to dumb to see it coming. 

 

“Seth?” Richie asks quietly, but he can’t quite meet Seth eyes, “Did you not want me to come home?”

 

“Richie that’s not what happened ok?” Seth explains to him as he shoots Vanessa a nasty look, “Of course I wanted you to come home!”

 

“No you didn’t!” Vanessa cuts in just as Richie is starting to look stricken, “You used to say all the time that the hospital was the best place for him!”

 

“ _Yes_ , when he wasn't well!” Seth argues with her and he looks like he really hates her now and Vanessa is at a loss to see why, “Of course the hospital was the best place for him! He was being looked after properly, which was more than what I could do on my own.”

 

Richie isn't really listening to either of them though; Vanessa suggestion that Seth had never actually wanted him to come home is clearly an insecurity of his. It was something that Vanessa had always used to pick at him when they were living together but unfortunately, Seth had always managed to assure Richie that he was wanted.

 

“I could have gone into assisted living or stayed with Eddie or gone somewhere else,” Richie rambles as Kate tries to calm him down, “Or maybe I could have spent longer at the hospital…”

 

“Richard stop ok?” Seth begs but he doesn't go over to Richie for fear or releasing Vanessa, “You were never going anywhere except home with me ok?”

 

Richie still isn't listening to him though and Vanessa can practically see the cogs spinning around in that fucked up brain of his, as he realises that he might not be so wanted after all. 

 

“…Or if I hadn’t gotten sick in the first place-”

 

“Well its too late now isn't it?” Vanessa spits at him, his little pity party is really pissing her off now, “You’ve already destroyed our marriage and then brought that little tramp around so she could seduce my husband!”

 

Kate throws her hands up but doesn't even bother with a comeback as she goes back to sorting out Richie’s face; evidently she has run out of lies to tell. It’s Seth that takes her to task for her comments, pushing her even further back into the corner as if that will stop her from speaking the truth. 

 

“What the fuck are you doing?” he asks her incredulously, “I mean, what the fuck do hope to accomplish by this, huh? You think that blaming Richie for our shitty marriage is going to make it better?”

 

“We’d have all been a lot better off if he’d have just killed himself like he was supposed to,” Vanessa spits out spitefully before she turns to Richie, “But you couldn't even do that right could you? Not even when you know that Seth is far better off with out you.”

 

A hush descends on them and Vanessa looks maliciously around from Kate’s who mouth is hanging open in utter shock and then to Richie, whose face’s has gone a funny colour. Before she can say anything else, Seth shoves her back again the wall; it’s not hard and she knows that she’s hurt him worse in the past but its enough to cause her to look at him in shock.

 

“Don’t you _ever_ ,” he says, his voice deadly and he looks angrier then she’s ever seen him, “ _Ever_ say that again!”

 

Then he lets her go, pushing her away from him like he can’t even bare to touch her. Kate is still staring at her like an idiot and it’s Richie who eventually breaks the silence. 

 

“I don’t think I want a birthday party anymore,” he says suddenly as he gets to his feet, he's gone all twitchy and weird, like he did when he was convinced his reflection was talking to him, “I think I’ve had enough now.”

 

“It’s ok buddy,” Seth tells him, like he’s talking to a startled animal, “We’re all just going to calm down now ok? I’m going to take Vanessa home and you and Kate can finish off that cake.”

 

He tries to take hold of his brother, but Richie pulls away from him like a skittish animal.

 

“No,” he mumbles as he starts to pull away from Seth again, like he can’t bear anybody to touch him, “I - I - I think I just want to go.”

 

“She needs to leave!” Kate hisses at Seth as she manages to take hold of Richie’s hand, “She needs to leave right now!”

 

“I’m not going anywhere until I’ve got some answers!” Vanessa bellows as she marches up to Kate and pulls her away from Richie’s side, “ANSWER ME YOU LITTLE CREEP!”

 

“FOR THE LAST TIME I HAVENT DONE ANYTHING!” Kate screams, almost crying in exasperation as she pulls herself free from Vanessa’s grip, “NOW GET OUT!”

 

She turns her back to go back to sort out Richie and Vanessa completely losses it; snatching up the wooded stool that Kate had used to hang up the decoration, she lets out a roar and hurls it straight at Kate. 

 

“What the-” Kate cries as Seth rugby tackles both her and Richie to the floor just in time before the stool smashes into the exact spot where Kate had been standing.

 

“ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND?” Seth yells, duking as Vanessa starts throwing Eddie’s old VHS collection at them.

 

“I know when this all started!” she screams as she hurls “Master Blaster” at them, “It was when you started going round and staying over whilst Richie was in the nut house again!”

 

She pelts them with a very heavy copy of “The Bronx Executioner” and the “Class of Nuke’Em High”, causing all three of them to try and hide behind the small coffee table to avoid being hit. 

 

“Because she was upset,” Seth explains, almost crying in exasperation as “Hard Ticket to Hawaii” goes sailing past his ear, “Like any normal person would be!”

 

Kate has managed to pull Richie out of harms way but he still seems to behaving oddly and has the air of someone whose not really aware of whats going on around them. She puts her arms around him, his head resting against her chest as she strokes his hair and talks softly to him.

 

“Why did you need to go round there all the time?” Vanessa demands as she throws “MegaForce” at Seth as he emerges out from behind the coffee table to try and stop her, “Why did you need to see her every fucking day!”

 

“Because her mom fucking killed herself, ok?” Seth bursts out suddenly, as he knocks one of the tapes out of Vanessa’s hand, “Now are you happy? Her mom killed herself when she was a kid and she was worried about Richie.”

 

Vanessa looks over at Kate but the dumb little dwarf is keeping all her focus on Richie; clearly Kate has a taste for broken things and if her mom killed herself it makes sense that she would take up with Richie. She probably got her grubby mitts on her moms inheritance and was now after more. 

 

“Oh so, just because her mom was fucked up as well,” Vanessa snarls Seth as she raises another VHS to defend herself with, “You had to babysit her just like Richie? 

 

“Don’t talk about my mother Vanessa,” Kate says, her voice  harsh and deadly as she pulls away from Richie, her eyes narrowed down to slits as she glares at Vanessa, “ _Ever_.”

 

“Or what?” Vanessa sneers across at her, “I bet Mommy couldn’t wait to get away from you. I’m surprised Richie hasn't tried to off himself again, having to put up with you all the time.”

 

Seth is looking completely horrified by what she’s just said, but its all true, they all know it. Mommy Fuller probably couldn't wait to stick a noose around her neck once she realised what a bad seed her daughter was.  

 

“What is _wrong_ with you?” Seth asks her, “What-”

 

He’s cut off again by Kate, who knocks him clear out of the way again like a battering ram, as she vaults over the coffee table and barrels towards Vanessa. It’s at this point that Vanessa is starting to realise that she’s never actually seen Kate truly angry; she’d stuck rigidly to her Little Miss Sunshine act ever since Vanessa had known her. The Kate charging towards her at full force looks like a very savage, albeit small, wolverine and her teeth bared as she lets out a loud roar of anger. 

 

Vanessa was ready for Kate this time, she wasn't about to be caught of guard again by that little troll, and she blocks the side of her face from impact; only it doesn't come. Instead of punching her in the face, Kate rams the heel of her palm straight upwards against Vanessa nose and cause her to scream in pain as she hears something inside her crunch. Blood drips down her chin and onto the carpet but Vanessa pays it no mind as she draws back her fist, and thumps Kate straight in the eye. They wrestle with each other; both girls clawing at each others hair and faces, screaming and yelling as each tried to get the other hand. Vanessa manages to get Kate by the throat, her fingers squeezing as hard as she can, when her hands are suddenly pried away and she finds Richie looking at her with an unrivalled fury. With one tug he pulls Kate clean out of Vanessa’s grip and theres a loud gulping sound as she struggles for breath.

 

“GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HER!” Richie demands as he keeps one arm locked around Kate’s waist; she’s still fighting tooth and nail to get to Vanessa, “WHY DID YOU HAVE TO SAY THAT ABOUT HER MOM?”

 

“Because it’s true!” Vanessa tells him as she attempts to strike out at Kate again, only to find Richie blocking her path again, “Nobody wants to be around that evil little witch! You should be thanking me for showing you what she’s really like!”

 

“NO IT ISN’T TRUE!” Richie roars back at her, seemingly undated by the struggle Kate is putting in as she claws at Vanessa, “YOU DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HER OR HER FAMILY AND IF YOU DID THEN YOU WOULDN’T SAY SUCH HURTFUL THINGS!”

 

He’s still got Kate tucked firmly underneath his arm, preventing her from escaping, but Kate isn't even struggling any more; tears are pouring silently down her cheeks.

 

“I KNOW ALL ABOUT HER!” Vanessa spits back at him, “I KNOW SHE’S A CHEAP, DIRTY LITTLE GUTTER WHORE WHOSE BEEN SLEEPING WITH MY HUSBAND!”

 

“NO SHE HASNT” Richie and Seth both yell in unison.

 

“YOU’RE SUCH AN IDIOT RICHARD!” Vanessa says incredulously as Kate lets out a loud sob, “I’VE JUST TOLD YOU THAT SHE’S BEEN SLEEPING WITH YOUR BROTHER AND YOU STILL THINK SHE’S LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE!”

 

Richie shakes his head at her before he hands Kate to Seth, making sure his brother has a firm grip on her before he turns his attentions back to Vanessa.

 

“THAT’S BECAUSE SHE IS!” he bellows at her as Kate wipes her runny nose with the sleeve of her cardigan, “MAYBE IF YOU JUST GOT TO KNOW HER INSTEAD OF ACCUSING HER OF THINGS AND BEING HORRIBLE, THEN YOU WOULD KNOW THAT!”

 

“WHY ON EARTH WOULD I WANT TO KNOW THAT LITTLE CREAP?” Vanessa screams whist Kate has finally stopped her fake crying routine; it had worked though as Seth is rubbing her arm to try and comfort her. 

 

“That’s enough now Vanessa, Seth says quietly as Kate blubbers next to him, “Whatever going on with us has got nothing to do with them.”

 

All three of them are breathing heavily with emotion and exertion but Vanessa is nowhere near done. 

 

“It has everything to do with them!” she yells, “Those two freaks have been messing everything up for us since day one!”

 

“Why do you have to be so cruel? Richie asks suddenly as he makes his back over to Kate, “There was never anything stopping you being a part of this family!

 

Vanessa is almost taken aback by the audacity of his words; he never speaks back to her and Vanessa will pick and needle at him to goad him into saying something to her but he’s never risen to it. It was normally very irritating that he wouldn't take the bait, it would have been so much easier to make him seem even more unhinged if he had yelled at her, but Vanessa is almost apocalyptic with rage that he would dare speak to her like that. 

 

“Oh yes there was; you! Everything was about you, how _you_ were felling, if _you_ were ok, never mind the rest of us!” she screeches at him as she flies into a rage, “You had to have all the attention and I couldn't have anything because everyone was so wrapped in poor crazy Richie!”

 

“What did you think I was going to do?” Seth says suddenly as he pulls away from the other two, “Just leave him stuck in there all on his own?”

 

“YES!” Vanessa retorted; how is it not clear that Richie should have been left to fend for himself so that they could get on with there lives? “He didn't deserve half the stuff you did for him!”

 

“What, he didn't deserve me looking after him?” Seth asks her sarcastically, “He didn't deserve me helping him to get better?”

 

“You know, any normal person would be glad to see that their partner takes such good care of their family members,” Kate buts in, her smug little smile on full display as Richie cuddles her.

 

“Well your’s certainly didn’t,” Vanessa counters, wiping that dirty little grin off Kate’s face, “Otherwise Mommy would still be alive wouldn't she?”

 

“Stop talking about her mom!” Richie shouts at her as Kate tries to struggle away from him again. After a bit to-ing and fro-ing, Richie finally manages to secure Kate behind him and he faces Vanessa.

 

“I’m sorry if i got in the way of your relationship with Seth,” he says, sounding ever like the simpering idiot, “I know that I was a lot to deal with, and maybe I could have tried harder to get better faster but I was doing as best as I could…

 

“RICHARD!” Seth says loudly and sternly, cutting through Richie’s self loathing diatribe as he takes his brother roughly by the shoulders, “Do not do _this_ , do not let her make you feel like you did anything wrong.”

 

“Don’t talk rubbish Seth,” Vanessa jeers as Seth turns his attention back to her, “He was an attention seeking brat, that’s all it was! He just couldn't stand to see you happy!”

 

“I couldn't help getting sick,” Richie mumbles in a somewhat broken voice, reminding Vanessa of all the pathetic winging she had to put up when Richie had a bad day or someone in the street had frightened him.  

 

“ _Yes_ _you could,_ ” Vanessa hisses at him, Richie just didn't try hard enough and half of it was just made up for sympathy, “ You just wanted attention and for someone to baby you like Seth did!”

 

They’re all looking at her again; like they can’t believe the stuff that’s coming out of her mouth but Vanessa doest care; all three of them know what she’s saying is true. Kate probably just doesn't want to get herself kicked out of the inheritance by saying what she really thinks of Richie.

 

“Do you think I wanted to be locked up for five years?” Richie whispers, tears beginning to form at the corners of his eyes, “To be away from my family?”

 

“Yes!” she snarls at him, glad that he’s finally opening his eyes to what his selfishness has put her through, “And you don’t even have a family; you’ve just got Seth and a stupid dead Uncle who didn't even want you!”

 

Seth is looking at her with his mouth hanging open, shaking his head in disbelief as Vanessa silently dares him to correct her. When it becomes clear that he has no justification for her actions or is willing to admit that she’s right, Vanessa marches over to the fireplace and snatches up one of Richie’s birthday card.

 

“All this,” she spits as she starts tearing it into pieces, each word punctuated by another piece of card being ripped, “Is-just-a-ridiculous-attempt-to-pretend-that-they-care-about-you!”

 

Once she’s done, she scatters the torn bits of card at his feet with a huge grin on his face as Richie looks down sadly as the pieces of Kate’s ridiculous, over the top card drift towards him.

 

“You ripped his cards up?” Kate whispers aghast, looking down in disbelief before her voice starts to rise, “YOU RIPPED HIS FUCKING BIRTHDAY CARDS UP?!”

 

For a a brief second Vanessa thinks that Kate might actually pick the coffee table up and throw it at her, the look on her face is deadly and Vanessa takes a step backwards just to be on the safe side. 

 

“I’m sorry,” Richie mumbles, still looking like a lost little kid in the playground, “I didn’t mean-”

 

He’s pathetic little act of misery is grating on Vanessa’s last nerve and she picks up one of the picture frames on the fireplace and hurls it straight at his head. It shatters near on the wall behind him, just beside his ear as Seth and Kate both duck for cover, Kate trying to tug Richie down with her by his hand.

 

“I really didn't mean-” Richie wines again but Vanessa has had enough and she  snatches up a picture of Kate, Seth and Richie with Uncle Eddie and throws it at him again but he just manages to dodge out of the way in time before it hits him.

 

“WHY COULD’NT YOU JUST HAVE STAYED IN THAT FUCKING NUT HOUSE LIKE YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO?” she screams at him as she snatches up another weapon just as Richie starts franticly yelling at her to stop.

 

“I FUCKING HATE YOU!” she roars, propelling her missile through the air where it explodes onto the wall behind Richie, completely covering him from head to foot in a thick layer of grey dust. 

 

“What the…” Seth mumbles in confusion as he stares at Richie, who is completely frozen in place and looking like he’s just been rescued from an earthquake. 

 

“ _Oh my god, oh my god, OH MY GOD_!” Kate cries as she claps her hands to her mouth, looking down at the broken piece of china that landed near her foot in horror. Everyone is utterly still and Vanessa looks wildly from Kate to Seth, who still doesn't seem to realise what’s happened, she hadn't meant it, if she had known what it was when she had picked it up… 

 

Nobody moves for what seems like an eternity and Vanessa watches, almost in slow motion, as Seth bend down and picks up the pice of shattered pottery, turning it over in his hand until finally he realises what it is; it’s Eddie’s urn.

 

“ _Jesus_ , JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!” Seth screams in horror, dropping the piece of china almost as if it had burnt him, just as Richie spits out a mouthful of Eddie’s ashes. 

 

From his hair down to his shoes, Richie is covered in bits of Uncle Eddie; you can’t even see his eyes through his glasses the ashes are so thick. Kate is standing to the side, looking like a deer caught in headlights, with her hands still clapped over her mouth as she stares at Richie.

 

“What do I do? What do I do?,” Seth rambles as he stares around widely as if someone is going tell him how to solve this, “FUCK!”

 

Kate makes a very robotic move towards Richie but it looks like her brain hasn't quite connected with what she’s seeing in front of her, almost like she can’t believe what she’s just witnessed. It’s Seth that seems to come out of his trance first, and he suddenly starts racing towards the kitchen at top speed.

 

“I’ve got it!” he yells loudly as he almost trips over the stool that Vanessa had thrown earlier, “I’VE GOT IT; HOLD ON BUDDY!”

 

Vanessa tries to grab hold of him as he goes flying past her; Seth will know that she didn't mean it, that Richie and that idiot Kate had pushed her too far. 

 

“Seth, Seth please,” she wines as she hangs onto his shirt, “If Richie had just gotten rid of Eddie like he was supposed to, then none of this would have happened.”

 

It was true; she had been telling them for months to get rid of Eddie and now look at what had happen! It wasn't her fault! Seth tries to pull her off him but she won’t let go so in the end he shoves her, hard enough that she stumbles and lands on the floor. Vanessa is back on her feet soon enough and she tries to block Seth’s path into the kitchen.

 

“Just listen to me!” she begs as he tries to move around her, “I know it looks bad but It wasn't my fault!”

 

“Get the fuck out of my way!” Seth snarls as he pushes her roughly to one side, “AND GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE WHILST YOUR AT IT!”

 

She’s not about to give up on him, he’ll understand once she explains everything to him, but before Vanessa can chase after him, something smashes into her back and she ends up sprawled out face first on the floor. Her breath comes out in great gasps as she lays there, completely winded by the force of whatever it was that hit her. Then there’s an angry snarl, like a vicious wild animal, and something pins her to the floor and blow after blow reigns down on her from above.

 

“YOU-EVIL-SPITEFUL-MONSTER!” Kate screams as she sits astride Vanessa’s back and beats her as hard as she can with her tiny fists, “HOW-COULD-YOU-DO-THAT?!”

 

Vanessa yelps in pain as she tries to bring her arms up to protect her head, Kate doesn't seem like she’ll be stopping anytime soon and the blows keep coming.

 

“GET OFF ME!” she screams as she tries to twist herself over to dislodge Kate, “GET OFF ME YOU STUPID FUCKING BITCH!”

 

“NO!” Kate screams as she punches Vanessa hard in the back of the head, sending her into a fit of dizzy spells.

 

“I SAID GET OFF!” Vanessa repeats and she somehow manages to throw herself to the side, removing Kate for a moment, as both women end up wrestling each other to the ground.

 

“WHY-WOULD-YOU-DO-THAT?!” Kate screeches, every word punctuated by her fist smashing into whatever bit of Vanessa she could reach.

 

“BECAUSE HE FUCKING DESERVED IT!” Vanessa screams back at her as she grabs Kate by the hair and yanks hard to left, causing Kate to yell out in pain. Shoving her to one side, Vanessa staggers back to her feet and calls out to Seth, only for Kate to grab her by the ankle drag her backwards. 

 

“LET GO!” she screams as she tries to kick Kate in the face, “LET GO OF ME, YOU STUPID TROLL!”

 

All this does is succeeds in making Kate even more angry and she leaps on top of Vanessa and the pair go rolling across the living room floor again.

 

“IF YOU HADN’T BEEN FUCKING SETH, NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED!”

Vanessa screams as she wrestles Kate to the ground, only for Kate to sink her teeth into the back of her hand like a wild animal.

 

“HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO HIM?” Kate screams, as Vanessa yelps in agony and holds her bitten hand, “HOW COULD YOU THROW EDDIE AT HIM?!”

 

“I’M COMING RICHIE, JUST STAY THERE!” Seth suddenly yells out from the kitchen just as a loud crash rings out, followed by a string of loud swearing.

 

The mention of Richie’s name makes Kate stop slamming her fists into Vanessa and she looks over at Richie, who is still seems to be a complete state of shock and has barely moved. 

 

“Richie,” she mumbles and she finally lets go of Vanessa to scramble back towards him but Vanessa snatches the ends of her long brown hair, sending her crashing back down to the floor. Kate rolls over; hissing in pain as she clutches her elbow, and Vanessa uses the opportunity to get back up on her feet. She doesn't get very far as Kate swipes her legs out from underneath her and grabs hold of her by the hair.

 

“YES! I’M COMING RICHIE,” Seth calls again, as Kate and Vanessa battle it out to see who can get to their feet first.

 

Some sort of rage monster must have taken over Kate because even though Vanessa has size and weight on her side, she just can’t seem to stop the little beast. She’s on her knees now; Kate has both her hands locked around Vanessa’s hair and is dragging her towards the front door.

 

 “GET OFF, GET OFF!!” Vanessa screams as she stumbles along on her hands and knees, “SETH; SETH TELL HER TO LET ME GO!”

 

 

Seth comes sprinting back from the kitchen, covered in paint and holding a Dirt Devil, and he stops dead in his tracks as he finds his wife being dragged along by her hair by someone who is barely five foot tall. Vanessa howls in pain as Kate continues to pull her forward with the type of strength she didn't think was possible for someone so small and pathetic.

 

 

“AGGGH,” she shrieks, as some of her hair falls out onto the floor, “LET ME GO YOU FUCKING BITCH!!”

 

She twists her head up to look at Seth, her eyes full of tears as she begs him to help her but Seth can’t seem to move his feet; he just stands there looking gormless whilst Kate continues to pull Vanessa towards the front door.

 

“PLEASE SETH!” Vanessa begs as Kate wrenches the front door open, one hand still gripping Vanessa’s long locks, “MAKE HER STOP!!

 

“GET THE _FUCK_ ,” Kate snarls, her face so furious that it looks like a demon from anther world had crawled up inside her, as she looks down at Vanessa’s huddled form on the floor, “OUT OF MY HOUSE!”

 

Then she pushes Vanessa so hard over the doorway that she slips and lands painfully of the floor; her knees and palms slicing on the gravel. She lays there whimpering as Kate takes on Seth, her loud screaming echoing all around the neighbourhood. For one brief moment, Vanessa thinks that Kate might actually punch Seth as well, but all she’s after is the Dirt Devil in his hands. 

 

“Kate-” Seth attempts but she’s not listening to him and she wrestles the vacuum cleaner out of his hands.

 

“I TOLD YOU NOT TO BRING HER!” Kate screams, tears pouring down her face as she clutches the Dirt Devil tightly in her grip, “I TOLD YOU SHE WOULD SPOIL IT FOR HIM!”

 

Vanessa tries to stagger to her feet but she’s in too much pain, otherwise she would have slapped Kate senseless for suggesting to Seth that she shouldn't be invited.  

 

“I’m sorry! Seth says desperately as he tries to calm her down but Kate pushes him away from her and towards the door. 

 

“LOOK WHAT SHE DID SETH,” Kate wails, her face bright red from crying and being punched by Vanessa, “LOOK WHAT SHE DID TO EDDIE!”

 

“I know but-” Seth tries again but it seems like Kate’s little love affair with him is over and she shoves him hard in the chest.

 

“GET OUT!!” she demands, tears dripping all the way down her chin and onto the carpet, “GET OUT NOW!”

 

“Kate please,” Seth begs desperately and this time she really does let fly with her fist but Seth catches he wrist easily, “Kate I’m sorry, I didn't know she was going to do that! Please just let me help Richie!”

 

Kate pulls herself free from him and is looking as angry at him as she was Vanessa an Vanessa’s brain start to tick over again. Perhaps this could be the way she gets to keep Seth to herself after all. It was unfortunate that she had had to throw Eddie’s urn but that was all Richie’s fault; he should have scattered those ashes ages ago!

 

“GET OUT, GET OUT, GET OUT!!” Kate screams at the top of her lungs as she shoves Seth as hard as she can with both hands. He staggers backwards and trips over Vanessa’s leg, landing hard on the floor beside her. She tries to reach for him but Seth shakes her off and runs back towards the rapidly closing door. 

 

“RICHIE!” Seth yells but its too late; the door slams shut in his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Richie!! I hope you all enjoyed that; stay tuned for the next time when we ;eave crazy Vanessa for a little bit and find out just exactly what Seth and Kate were up to...
> 
> As always, comments are greatly appreciated and come say hi to me on Tumblr if you want! xx


	4. Chapter 4

Kate slams the door shut behind her; her hands fumbling on the lock as she tries to drag it across and prevent that disgusting woman from getting back into her house. Her breath is coming out in angry bursts and she lets out a frustrated growl; her shaking hands are making difficult to pull the bolt back.  
 ****

“Come on,” she whimpers desperately, as the heavy lock refuses to budge, “Please!”

 

 

It seems to take forever and every second she wastes trying to make her fingers corporate is more time that Vanessa has to get back inside the house. Kate’s not sure what she’d do if she saw that woman again so quickly as half of her wants to run away in fear whilst the other half wants to slam Vanessa’s head repeatedly into the carpet. The adrenaline os coursing through her body and Kate tries to keep control of herself as she brushes aside her mess of hair and _finally_ manages to get the lock in place. It makes her feel a tiny bit safer, almost like she’s locking out all the bad and terrible stuff that has just happened but the feeling of safety doesn't last for long. Strands of Vanessa’s dark hair are snarled around her fingers and Kate frantically tries to shake them off; fearing that they might infect her with Vanessa’s poison somehow. The ball of hair drops to the floor admit the rest of the carnage and Kate’s legs turn to jelly as she sinks down onto the floor. As much as she tried to hold it in, the pain came out like an roar from her throat in the form of a silent scream. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she held her head in her hands; how could everything have gone _so_ wrong? How could she of let Seth bring that _monster_ into her house and destroy it all? Bits of torn up “Happy Birthday” banners and other debris are scattered all around her and Kate can’t help but cry even harder; all she had wanted was to have a bit of fun and help Richie celebrate his birthday. Smears of pink cake frosting are all over the hallway rug and Kate feel even more defeated. as she thinks about all the time and effort she put in to make sure today would be perfect. A loud banging noise from outside startles her so much that she jumps to her feet, looking wildly around for something to defend herself with.

 

“RICHIE!!” Seth bellows through the locked door as he bangs his fist against it, “KATE PLEASE, OPEN THE DOOR!”

 

Wiping the tears off her cheeks Kate eyes the door warily; she hadn't meant to kick Seth out as well but she had just been _so_ angry. It’s a relief to know it’s just him but just as she reaches up to open the door for him, Vanessa’s horrible voice filters through from outside.  

 

“… it’s those two freaks that are the crazy ones, not me! It was his fault that happened-”

 

Its like a horrible insect is crawling around in her head and Kate can’t bare to listen to that poison anymore, there’s no way she’s letting Vanessa anywhere _near_ her.

 

“You _bitch_!” Kate snarls to herself; her hands pausing inches away from unlocking the door.

 

“RICHIE! RICHIE ARE YOU OK?” Seth bellows again, as he hammers on the door again but Kate backs away from it, “PLEASE KATE, OPEN THE DOOR!”

 

Go away, she begs silently, as she retreats further away from the door, please just leave us alone. Kate doesn't want them here, either of them, not when they’re bringing so much destruction and emotional turmoil into her house. Everyone had been letting Vanessa get away with being cruel and unkind for far to long and now looks what happened; Kate won’t let it go an longer, even if it does mean kicking Seth out as well. Vanessa is still trying to weasel her way out of what she did, and is trying to convince Seth to leave with her.

 

“Seth, would you just listen to me!” Vanessa is begging, “You know it wasn’t my fault!”

 

Kate doesn't think she’d have any control over herself right now if she saw Vanessa, just hearing her blame everyone else is setting her teeth on edge and her hands have balled up into fists; someone is gonna loose some teeth if that door opens. 

 

“PLEASE KATE,” Seth shouts again but Kate backs even further away from the front door, shaking her head silently to herself, “PLEASE JUST LET ME CHECK ON RICHIE!”

 

“GO AWAY!” Kate screams, and she charges at he door and hammers on it hard with her small fists, “LEAVE US ALONE!”

 

He brain keeps rapidly switching from the disgusting things Vanessa had said about Richie, the _video_ and the unforgivable comments about her mom; it’s like she can’t even think straight. How could one person be so _cruel_? The thought of even seeing Vanessa again is making her feel physically sick and Kate starts to panic that somehow this will be twisted to be her fault. There’s a loud scuffling sound on the other side of the door and Kate retreats away again; her breath coming out in big bursts and she’s not afraid to admit that she’s a little frightened knowing that Vanessa is just the other side of the door. Knowing that Vanessa had been _in her house_ when she and Richie were sleeping is making her skin crawl and her eyes dart back to the lock to make sure its bolted tight. 

 

“KATE OPEN THE DOOR!” Seth screams again, but Kate is shaking from head to foot by this point; she’s not going anywhere near that door.

 

“I SAID LEAVE!” she yells as tears start to roll down her cheeks again, “JUST GO AWAY!” 

 

She doesn't want either of them anywhere near her or in her house; she should _never_ have let Vanessa come in the first place. Kate should have stood her ground and said no when Seth had first asked her, Vanessa didn't even like Richie, and kept it as just the three of them. It had always been clear that Vanessa cared little for the other members of Seth’s family, which was evident tonight after how she treated Eddie’s remains. Kate had tried to bench to her, she had even apologised for getting drunk at hat stupid dinner party, nothing seemed to change Vanessa’s opinion of either her or Richie. Now their entire little family is fractured with one Gecko on either side and Kate isn’t sure if any of them will recover from this. Seth tries once more to get her to open the door but Kate remains silent and frozen in place until he eventually gives up and thankfully, a few minutes later, she hears the sound of Seth’s car stating up; the headlights illuminating the doorway as he drives away. Once she’s sure that they’re gone, Kate lets out a huge sob and sinks down onto the carpet; tears flowing freely down her face. This was all _just too much_ for her and she was starting to feel overwhelmed at how to handle it all; those horrid comments about her mom kept popping back into her head, and suddenly she was sixteen again and staring at the coffin of her dead mother. How could one person have so much _hate_ and bitterness bottled up inside them? Kate sniffles loudly as she tries to ignore the little doubts that always crawl around inside her head, whenever she thinks too hard about her moms suicide. Richie had always told her that her mom’s suicide had nothing to do with her; some people just find life too hard but that doesn't mean that her mom didn't love her. It had helped her a lot talking to Richie about her mom he… RICHIE!

 

“Oh my gosh!” Kate shrieks, her face turning white as she staggers to her feet; she’d just left him standing there, covered in ashes whilst she bawled her eyes out on the floor!

 

The Dirt Devil had laid forgotten on the floor but Kate snatches it back up and darts into the kitchen to get a plastic Tupperware box. Her body protests loudly, and she’s now beginning to feel every punch and slap that Vanessa had dished out, but she ignores it and sprints back to the living room. The room is looks like someone had robbed them; the coffee table is in ruins, torn up decorations litter the ground and Vanessa’s stupid “evidence” bags are strewn about the place. Kate almost slips over on the used condom that Vanessa had pilfered from her trash bin in her haste to make it to Richie. How could she have just left him?! _Poor Eddie_ , her brain whirls, how could anyone think its ok to destroy an urn like that? 

 

“RICHIE!” Kate shouts as she runs up to him, skidding to a halt halfway across the rug; Eddie is still scattered all over the floor and Kate has to sidestep quickly to prevent herself from stepping in him.

 

 

Richie is still standing there, completely covered in Eddie’s remains, and doesn't seem to have moved at all since Kate kicked Seth and Vanessa out. He looks like a someone who had been trapped underground or had got had fallen in a large vat of dried cement. Not one bit of his skin is showing through and there’s a thick layer of ash covering his glasses; preventing him from seeing. Kate can hear him breathing though but it’s shallow and harsh, like he can’t seem to get enough air into his lungs. It takes all her effort not to fling her arms around Richie and hold him tight; the shock radiating off him is evident and Kate can’t bear to leave him like that moment longer.

 

“Richie?” she says softly as she approaches him carefully so as not to spook him, “Richie it’s just me, Kate, Seth and Vanessa have gone.”

 

He doesn't respond; just the same ragged breathing and the slight tremor running through his body. Kate tries again but she may as well be talking to the couch; she needs to work fast or Richie is going to fall into some deep, dark place that he might not ever recover from. How do you even begin to put yourself back together after having someones cremated ashes thrown all over you? Ok you can do this, Kate tells herself, as comes a bit closer to him; she can’t even hold his hand, it’s completely covered in grey dust.  

 

 

“Richie?” she said gently as she approached him, “Richie I’m going to get this off you ok? Sorry, I didn't mean, what I meant was-”

 

She didn't mean to say _this,_ like Eddie was nothing more than dirt, but as much as she hates to say it, taking care of Richie is her priority right now. Eddie would understand she hopes, as she pulls the plastic lid off the Tupperware box and sets it to one side. Enabling Richie to see would probably be a good start and Kate spots a make up brush that fell out of Vanessa’s handbag and snatches it up. 

 

 

“I’m going to take you’re glasses off,” she explains, speaking loudly and clearly in an attempt to reassure Richie, Then you’ll be able to see and I can get Eddie back were he belongs, ok?”

 

Holding the plastic container out in front of her to catch any falling bits, Kate carefully removes Richie’s glasses and eyes that so full of sadness stare back at her. His dark blue eyes looked as if an ocean had been encased inside of small glass marbles that had almost started to leak. "Please don't leave me." they said and she won’t’ there’s nothing on this earth that could pull her away from his side.

 

“It’s alright,” Kate says again, aware that she’s one big blur to him, “I’m gonna clean these and then you can put them back on.”

 

He still doesn't say anything but his eyes tell her more than words ever could; the smooth spheres appear to be cracking and the ocean tide has turned, little water droplets brimming at his dark lashes. 

 

Working quickly; Kate brushes off Richie’s glass, making sure to get every last bit of Eddie into the plastic box. Kate had thought that a persons ashes might look like concrete but these look like grey,crushed sea shells. What with her daddy being a Preacher and all, she was used to seeing cremation urns but it was another thing all together to have to pick up the scattered remains of someone. Once she’s sure that Richie’s glasses are clean, she reaches up and sets them back on his face; his dark blue eyes still wide with shock.

 

“There,” she says softly as she smiles up at him, “Now you can see. I’m going clean your face now, ok?”

 

Richie stares blankly at her but she can see that he’s trying to to get his brain back online, trying to make sense of what just happened. Holding the Tupperware box under his chin, she starts on his face; lightly dusting the ashes from his face and talking to him quietly as she goes. If you asked her now what she said to him, Kate couldn't tell you, she had just said anything that had popped into her head. Whatever it was, Richie appears to find comfort in it, the tremor of shock seemed to be receding a little; his fingers keep twitching and Kate desperately wants to hold his hand. It takes her a while to brush everything off his face and even then, Richie face’s is covered in a weird grey, oily film that doesn't look like it’s going to shift on its own. She’ll have to think about that later though because Eddie is still all over Richie’s shoes and hair; it was time to use the Dirt Devil. 

 

 

“This is going to be loud, but it’s only for a little while,” Kate reassured him as she held up the Dirt Devil, “Just a little bit longer and I’ll have Eddie right back where he belongs.”

 

Richie gave a sharp nod, causing ashes to cascade down from his hair and onto the floor. He freezes instantly and Kate doesn't have to hear him speak to be able to tell that he’s in free fall right now. 

 

“It’s ok, she repeats as reassuringly as she can, “We’re going to make sure we get all of Eddie put back, don’t you worry.”

 

The noise of the Dirt Devil seems awfully loud and Kate can feel Richie trembling violently as she makes a start at removing as much of Eddie as she can. She tries to be as quick as she can but its hard work; Richie is full on shaking now and she can hear his panicked gulps of air coming over the noise of the Dirt Devil. Please, she prays, please just hold on a little longer, I’m going to make this ok for you. Kate didn't think she could hate Vanessa any more than she already did, but as she starts sucking up the remains of a person with a mini vacuum cleaner, she finds that she can add a little bit more hate for that horrid woman. Her hands are shaking as she tries to get every last little bit because this is _Eddie_ ; the man that had made her fresh orange juice every morning and called her ‘Sunshine’. Eddie was a person and he deserved better then to just be flung about like he was little more than an inconvenience. It was making her feel sick again as she remembered how savagely Vanessa had just snatched him up and thrown him. There clearly wasn't an ounce of compassion left in that woman’s body and Kate will never, ever forgive her for this. Moving the Dirt Devil across Richie’s shoulder’s, Kate tries to think of _anything_ that she can say to make this better for Richie. She’s not stupid; there’s probably going to be bits of Eddie in the carpet for weeks. 

 

“Almost done honey,” she says loudly as she sucks the last of Eddie off Richie’s hands, “You’re almost done.”

 

Once she’d vacuumed up as much as she could off Richie and the floor, Kate deposited Eddie carefully into the plastic Tupperware box and put the lid on; securing it extra tight. Richie’s skin was still covered in a greasy grey layer of ashes and his skin is freezing when she’s finally able to take hold of his hand. 

 

“Why don’t we go take a nice warm bath?” she asked him and Richie nods vaguely, still not really looking at her, “Get you nice and clean.”

 

Kate has to tug him hard on the hand so he’ll follow her, as she leads him upstairs towards the bathroom His limbs move as if someone who only has the vaguest notion of how a person should move is controlling them, and his eyes are wide, looking right at Kate, but not really seeing her. Not for the first time she considers calling Burt and seeing if he can help, but it’s late and she wouldn’t want to drag him out of bed and all the way over here. Plus, she’d have to explain why Richie ended up covered in his dead Uncles’ ashes in the first place _and_ why she looks like she’s been mud wrestling Attila the Hun. Burt has been very clear in the past with Seth that if he feels like Richie isn’t getting the proper support or care, he would have a duty of care to remove him. If Richie ends up back in the hospital or worse, Kate will make that woman’s life sheer and utter hell until the end of time and beyond it if she can manage it. She can do this; Richie just needs some careful handling thats all, just a little bit of extra TLC, which Kate is always happy to provide. Don’t fall too far away from me, she prays as she gently steers him towards the bathroom.

She makes Richie sit down on the upturned toilet seat whilst she flies around the bathroom, turning on the taps, throwing in some bubble bath and then pulling everything out of the bathroom cabinet whilst she hunts for the peppermint oil they keep in there. She adds a few drops the bathwater and the aroma hits her, instantly calming her down. Richie had got it for her when she stressed to high hell during her college exams; training to be a kindergarten teacher was exhausting. They used it quite a bit when they gave each other massages or when Richie had first come out of the hospital and Kate would share a bath with him. When they had remodelled the house, they'd made sure to get a bath that was big enough for two. Seth had laughed in their faces when Richie awkwardly lied that they’d only got it because he was tall, and told them to come up with a better excuse for their “naked tub time.” Shower sex was over rated, sometimes Kate just liked to wash her hair in peace, and the bath was so big that they could sit at opposite ends; Kate’s little feet just reaching Richie’s important bits. Now isn't the time to be thinking about sex and she turns around to find Richie struggling to undo his shirt. 

 

“Here,’ Kate says, as she stills his hands, “Let me do that for you.”

 

Richie just lets his hands drop and Kate swiftly undresses him, it takes her a little time to get him to stand up so he can remove his trousers, and then leads him over to the steaming hot bath. Richie’s skin is cold and clammy and she’s shivering underneath the layer of weird grey, oil; Eddie would understand though, he wouldn't want Richie to suffer. 

 

“Richie?” she says gently, as she tries to move him closer towards the bathtub, “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”

 

He kind of nods at her and shuffles along where she instructs him to go, but it’s almost like he’s not really in there; like his mind has just shut up shop and gone on holiday. He just needs a little time, Kate thinks desperately, as she helps him into the bathtub, steadying him so he doesn't slip. Once he’s safely sat down, Kate pulls off her tattered and torn sundress and slips out of her bra and panties before she climbs in behind Richie. The cake that Vanessa had thrown at her seems to have gotten everywhere and a half of it seemed to fall out of her bra. Kneeling up behind him in the water, Kate grabs a sponge and starts to wet Richie’s hair, making sure that the water doesn't run over his glasses. The water drips down his hair softly, then drops slowly made their way down his long lean body. Without even having to think; Kate starts to sing. 

 

 

**_“I have sailed the peaceful waters of the ocean deep and blue,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_I held my breath and watched the western sunsets golden hue,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_I've flown above the mountain peaks and valleys wide and green,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_But you're the nearest thing to heaven that I've seen,”_ **

 

 

Kate’s not even through the first line when Richie’s shoulders instantly start to relax as she carefully runs the wash cloth over them. After squeezing some shampoo into her hands, she massages his scalp the way she knows he likes, and feels a little pang of guilt as a few stray bits of ashes tumble out into the water. In her head, Kate feels like if she gets him clean, then she’ll be rid of all the horrible things Vanessa had said to him. Richie lets out a contented sigh as Kate carries on singing and he leans his head back into her hands; a sure sign that he’s coming back to himself. It was her mom who Kate first used to sing for, in fact she was the only one Kate would ever sing for. “Sing me a song Humming Bird,” she’d say and Kate would climb up on the bed next to her, and sing the old country songs her mom liked best. It was the only thing that ever seemed to make her mom smile when she was having one of her ‘headaches’ and Kate always felt a great sense of peace, knowing that she had done something to make her mom happy. Her dad had tried to convince her to join the school choir but Kate had always been a little on the shy side; all those people staring at you? No thanks. Kate found she sang best when it was just her and her mom, curled up on the bed together with the curtains closed. Then her mom passed away and Kate didn't sing for years and would refuse point blank whenever anyone asked her; the special connection she had to it was gone, just like her mom.

 

 

**_“You're the nearest thing to heaven yes you are,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_I have searched for happiness so long and far,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_But my search for love was through the day that I found you,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_Cause you're the nearest thing to heaven yes you are,”_ **

 

It wasn’t until years later, when she was first dating Richie, that she found her voice again. The memory of it always brings a smile to her face; which is probably why she’s singing the same song she did back then to him as she is now. It had been when they were first dating and Kate had gotten up to take a shower after spending the night. She’d left Richie spread out in the bed fast asleep and the urge to sing had just taken over as the hot water had poured down on her. When she had finished she found Richie, staring at her in awe from the bathroom doorway.

 

“You’re like a little Humming Bird,” he had said to her, as he beamed at her. The tears had started to fall before Kate could even stop them; nobody had called her that for such a long time. Richie had encouraged her to join the local choir, he’d sat at the back so she wouldn't feel so nervous, and a little piece inside her thinks that maybe her mom might be able to hear her all the way up in heaven. Now she’s Richie’s “Little Humming Bird” and he seems to like hearing her sing just as much as her mom did. He’ll often come and seek her out if he hears her singing around the house; he’ll come and lay down on the bed if she’s singing whilst she’s getting ready or he’ll get in the shower and wash her hair for her whilst she sings some old country song. Something about her voice just seems to sooth him. 

 

 

**_‘I confess that I've been tempted by a luring magic charms,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_When the smile was flashed my way and stood before two open arms,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_But I turned and walked away because I love you like I do,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_You're the nearest thing to heaven darlin' you,”_ **

**_“You're the nearest thing to heaven…”_ **   
****

 

Once she’s finished with his hair, Kate climbs over him so he can wash chest and face. She’s forgotten that Vanessa had spit at him and she takes his glasses off once more so she can properly clean him; the bruise from where she slapped him standing out against his pale skin. The weird grey stuff comes off easily enough and reveals the silvery looking faded scars that criss cross Richie’s arms. Kate likes to kiss them when they cuddle together or run her fingers across them so Richie isn't so self conscious of them; to her they're like survival medals from a intensely fought war. Her nipples tighten in the cool air as she kneels in front of him to clean the rest of him; soap bubbles running down his stomach. He’s listening to her sing, Kate can just tell by the slightly less haunted look in his eyes and she smiles softly at him. Suddenly, he grabs her by the waist and pulls her close to him as soapy water spills out onto the floor. Its the most he’s moved all evening and Kate sends up a silent prayer of thanks as Richie holds onto her tightly; his head resting on her shoulder. Kate strokes his hair as she sings softly to him; she can almost _feel_ Richie slowly coming back to her.

 

**_“I have watched the silver raindrops fall to earth to cool the day,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_Watched the rainbow at twilight when the clouds had blown away,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_I love the pretty flowers but they cannot buy the worth,”_ **

**_“_ ** **_Cause you're the nearest thing to heaven on this earth,”_ **

 

Richie gives a very loud sigh as Kate continues to run the sponge over his back as she kisses him softly on the side of the face. Their relationship works so well because they’re a constant support to each other; Richie has helped Kate through some very dark times of her own and she honestly doesn't know what she’d do without him. Kate had felt her whole life had turned upside down, like a ship in a bottle, when she found out that her dad had been lying to her. They’d had an awful fight where Kate had accused him of driving drunk and killing her mom and then the truth had finally come out, as Jacob Fuller had tearfully explained that her mom had committed suicide. It was a hard blow to deal with and Kate didn't think that her relationship with her dad would ever recover, especially when she applied for college. It wasn’t that she had run away; she had just pointedly chosen a college that was far enough away from her little town in Texas that she wouldn't have to visit often. Fate must work in mysterious ways though because if she hadn’t taken off, she wouldn’t have moved in across the hall from the very cute guy with glasses. It was Richie that had helped her see a way through her anger and grief and put her on a path to forgiveness with her father. She’d probably have ended up bitter and twisted like Vanessa if it wasn't for him.

 

**_“You're the nearest thing to heaven…”_ **

 

As soon as she stops singing the spell seems to break and Richie retreats back into himself; shutting himself off from her again. The water had turned a weird grey colour and she tries to ignore the feelings of guilt she had as she drains the water; the remnants of Eddie going down the drain with it. 

 

“Richie?” she says softly as she tries to get his attention, “Time to get out now.”

 

Almost robotically his hand rises upward and he clasps her hand tight, his eyes flat ad lifeless as she helps him climb out of the bath. He just needs time, she tells herself again, as Richie shivers in front of her. Grabbing one the big fluffy towels, Kate gently dies him off and then manoeuvres him into his robe that hanging on the back of the door. After quickly drying herself off, Kate throws her own robe on and takes hold of his hand again; Richie still seems completely spaced.

 

“Richie?” she says again as she reaches up and takes his head in her hands, “Are you ok?”

 

Richie looks at her likes he's seeing her for the first time and he squeezes back on her hand, just as if he’s making sure she’s really there.

 

“I think I want to lie down,” he mumbles bluntly, as he clings on to Kate’s hand.

 

“That’s ok,” she tells him softly, “We can do that, you want to come lie down on the bed with me?”

 

Richie nods again, looking even more like a little lost child then ever, and hand in hand they make their way back to their bedroom; Kate suppressing shudder as she thinks about how many times Vanessa had been creeping about in here.Nudging Richie to sit back down on the bed, Kate kneels in front of him, gently stroking his freezing cold hands as she tries to bring him back to her.  

“What do you need baby?” she asks him, a little desperately, “Tell me what you need me to do.”

 

There are tears forming in his eyes again, his breath starts to hitch and Kate strokes his hands gently as he tries to get the words out; his shoulders heaving with the effort.

 

“I think I swallowed some,” Richie eventually gets out, as he suddenly leans over and starts to gag. 

 

Without even thinking, Kate grabs the trash can by the bed and shoves it under Richie’s nose just in time, bits of undigested birthday cake come flying out of his mouth. She can’t even think about Uncle Eddie being mingled in there as well and she rubs his back and tries to sooth him.

 

 

“I swallowed Eddie!” Richie wails hysterically as he looks up at her wild eyed, “ _I fucking swallowed him!_ ”

 

“It’s ok, it’s ok, you’re fine,” Kate tells him, as she holds the trash can underneath his face again as more vomit comes up. 

 

After that it doesn't seem to stop, and now Kate is staring to worry that all this being sick is going to affect Richie’s medication; what if it hadn't hit his system properly before it all came back up? Who even knows what the effects of swallowing a dead person are anyway. Maybe she should take him to a doctor? Or get his stomach pumped properly? Richie retches again and once she’s brushed his hair out of his glasses, Kate waits patiently, when at last Richie sits back and drags his sleeve across his sweaty face.

 

“Did you get all of him?” Richie asks her desperately, his voice bordering on hysteria, “Maybe we should go and take another look?”

 

He’s almost halfway out of the door when Kate catches his hand and pushes him back to sit on the bed; its horrible seeing him go from silent shock to completely manic like this. There’s nothing that she can say that will ever make any of this ok, that what Vanessa did wasn't cruel and vindictive and spiteful. Kate’s not about to let Richie’s mind turn against him though, she can already see little flickers of that vengeful demon coming through, and she grabs hold of both of his hands tightly.

 

“Richie,” she tells him firmly, “I got all of him ok? You don’t need to worry.”

 

This means nothing to Richie and he’s looking past her, around at the walls as whatever’s going on his head starts to take over. It’s like something is clawing away at him from the inside that just wants to cause him the most pain it possible can. 

 

“But what if you missed some?” Richie asks her franticly as his eyes go wide behind his glasses, “What if there’s still bits of him stuck in the carpet or I swallowed too much of him or-”

 

“Richie, honey you need to calm down ok?” Kate tells him repeats as she cuts off his racing thoughts, “We got all of him ok? Just breath baby, just sit here with me and breath.”

 

She’d done lots of work with Burt to work out a way to help Richie get out of a mood spiral and talking to him always seems to help; there really must be something about her voice. However Richie is sucking down air in big gulps, his body trembling with unspent energy as he tries to calm himself and try and help Eddie at the same time. Kate still has hold of his hands and he grips onto her like she’s the only thing that’s keeping him tethered to the earth. 

 

Richie?” she asks gently as she runs her thumb across his hand, “Are you ok?”

 

It seemed like such a silly question because of course he wasn't ok; how could anybody be ok after having the ashes of the person that raised them thrown all over them? There’s no hand book on this though, no instruction manual that can explain away the nightmare that they’d just been through. _Maybe_ if it had been an accident it wouldn't be so bad but it wasn’t; Vanessa knew _exactly_ what she was doing when she threw that urn. There’s a short wail and then Richie lets out a loud howl of misery and Kate can’t get him into her arms fast enough. He sobs into her chest unceasingly, his hands clutching at the back of her soft robe for some form of support. She holds him in silence, rocking him slowly as his tears soaked her chest.

 

 

“Shhhh,” she whispered to him softly as she strokes the back of his neck, “It’s ok, I’ve got you.”

 

They remain like that for what feels like hours, Richie sobbing his heart out as Kate tries to provide what comfort she can. It’s like a knife in her chest to see him like this, so wounded and vulnerable as all the pent up grief pours out of him. The easy thing would be to break down with him as well, but Kate can feel herself putting up a barricade between her own feelings; Richie needs her to be strong right now. What Vanessa said about her mom will never be forgiven or forgotten but Jenny Fuller is safely in Gods hands, whilst poor Uncle Eddie is sitting in a plastic Tupperware container. 

 

“Richie?” she whispers quietly as his crying seems to stem somewhat, “Come on sweetheart, talk to me.”

 

When he at last looks up at her, the look on Richie’s face almost breaks her, as it was a picture of grief, loss and devastation. It was the face of one who had suffered before and didn't know if he could do it again. All she can do is hold him close to her once more and stroke his hair the way she knows he likes and tell him that she’s here; she won’t leave him. Kate’s about to explain to him that it’s not really Eddie in that box, it’s just a shell and that the real Eddie is far away from harm, when Richie lets out another loud sob.

 

“This is all my fault!” he cries, “Vanessa was right; I should have scattered his ashes sooner or I should have put him some place safe!”

 

Kate’s jaw clenches in anger, firstly at the mention of Vanessa’s name and secondly that Richie could even _think_ that any of this could in anyway be his fault. Oh, she _hates_ that evil cow; Vanessa knows exactly how to twist Richie’s own brain against him.

 

“Richie,” Kate says as she tries to keep the furry out of her voice, “How were you supposed to know she was going to pick Eddie up and throw him at you?”

 

“But I should have!” Richie wails as he clings onto her extra tight, tears splashing down onto her leg,”Everyone kept telling me too and I wouldn't listen! I just thought it would be nice for him to stay with his family or so he could watch TV!”

 

It hadn't bothered anybody except Vanessa that Richie still hadn't scattered Eddie’s ashes; some people never do. Seth had said he was fine with whatever Richie wanted to do and Kate had thought that it was better for Richie to decide to let go for himself, rather than being forced to. Vanessa _always_ just had to bring it up and make out like it was creepy or weird to have the remains of family member sitting on your mantle piece. Kate will freely admit that she still says good morning to Eddie’s urn on her way out to college; she misses him too. 

 

“You weren't ready to say goodbye yet and that’s fine,” Kate tells Richie as she wipes the tears off his cheeks, “Not everyone grieves at the same rate; Eddie was a massive part of you’re life, it’s ok that you couldn't let that go yet.”

 

Kate makes a mental note to call her dad first thing in the morning; he’ll be able to explain this a lot better than she can. What she does know is that the body is just a vessel of flesh and blood; the things that truly make a person don’t stop existing just because the vessel breaks down. The things that made Eddie are kept alive in their memories, the wisdom he imparted on them and the silly stories he used to share at Family Dinner. That was the beautiful thing about Eddie; he was always willing to accept anybody but cross him, or mess around with one of his boys, and you were done for. He was never overtly mean or nasty, but you could see it in his eyes when you disappointed him and he saw right through Vanessa the moment he first met her. Sometimes, when Richie had gone to bed early, Kate would stay up talking to Eddie well into the early hours of the morning, “I just want Seth to be happy like Richie is with you,” he’d tell her sadly, and it breaks Kate’s heart knowing that he never got to see that. 

 

“He was the only one that ever cared about us,” Richie chokes out through his tears and wishes she could tell him that wasn't true, “We would have been stuck in the horrible care home if it hadn't been for him!”

 

It was late on a Friday night when Seth and Richie had overheard their Pa talking about some job he was doing that evening; neither of them knew exactly what their dad did all day besides drinking. Richie had calculated that the place that Pop was going to would give them enough time to catch a movie on the tv and they waited silently for him to leave. Uncle Eddie had given them a bag of sweets which they had hidden behind the wardrobe for an occasion just like this; Ray Gecko treated anything that would give his sons pleasure with utter contempt and Richie had lost count at the number of books his dad had torn up in front of him. They’d ended staying up far later than they intended, Frightmare was being re-run, but their dad had a habit of leaving them for long periods of time, so it didn't bother them. It was only when Richie was  laying wide awake, terrified that a zombie was going to eat him, that he heard all the banging outside. Seth said zombies weren’t real but Richie hadn't been so sure; they looked pretty real in all the films they watched. Then there was a loud bang, followed by a huge crash and Richie had scrambled across the small patch of floor; flinging himself into Seth’s bed. If they were going to be eaten by a zombie then at least they'd get eaten together. Seth had looked equally as terrified when their bedroom door was smashed in and a horde of police officers came piling in. Whilst Richie was glad it wasn't a zombie, he was confused as to why he and Seth were being pulled out of bed and thrown in the back of a waiting police car. Nobody would tell them what was going on, and they ended up huddled together on some plastic seats in the police station for hours. Apparently Ray Gecko had held up a liquor store, shot dead the clerk, a Texas Ranger and was now on the run from the law. A lady called Pam, with over dyed hair and too much lipstick, grabbed hold of them and shoved into the back of another car. The red lipstick smudged on Pam’s teeth made Richie think of vampires and he shrank back against Seth, fearful that they might be eaten after all. 

 

The children’s home Pam took them too was horrible; it still gave Richie nightmares just thinking about it. The boys dormitory has just large room full of small bunkbeds which they both got shoved into. Richie didn't mind sharing with Seth, they still did it sometimes at home, and they both huddled under the thin and itchy blanket as the other boys tried to grab their feet. One night turned into one long, miserable month and Richie had been growing increasingly more afraid at what was going to happen to them. Then Pam was saying to them that nobody would take two boys of their age, everyone wanted babies or young kids, and Seth would be staying here and Richie was being sent to some residential place that could “help him with his problems.” Seth would get a new family, hopefully, and Richie might be able to visit him sometimes if he behaved well enough in the residential home. Richie will never forget how hard Seth had grabbed hold of his hand under that table, as Pam made arrangements for Richie to be collected the next day. Whilst Richie had been ready to accept his fate, Seth would probably be better or without him, Seth wasn’t having any of it and had hatched an escape plan; they could use Pop’s secret stash of cash to get by. Richie had already had one leg out the bathroom window when they had heard a familiar voice yelling their names. It was Eddie; looking pissed as hell and reading Pam the riot act, laing into her about nobody even bothering to check if the kids had any other family. 

 

“I’ve been looking all over for you two,” he had said as he scooped them both up in a massive hug. 

 

Pam had started bleating about laws and regulations, as she tried to stop Eddie taking them but he was having none of it. He gave Seth the car keys and told them to get in whilst he had told Pam to “take her damn rules and regulations and shove it.” An hour later they were sat on his beat up old couch, drinking lemonade and watching Master of the Universe. Eddie didn't have to take them, technically he wasn't even a blood relative, but he had always treated them both like they were his own kids; they wouldn't have even made it this far without him to guide them through life. 

 

“Richie,-” Kate tries to reason with him again, but Richie is on full on melt down mode as he almost starts choking as he tries to breath and cry at the same time.

 

“Look how I repaid him!” he wails hysterically, his eyes wild an desperate, “After all he did for me!”

 

Kate can almost feel Richie’s mind spiralling as he gets increasingly more and more wound up; it seems like nothing she can say will calm him down and its scaring her. Maybe she should call Burt or drag Seth back here, but then that means adding Vanessa back into the equations. It’s frustrating her that she isn't able to do more or to give Richie exactly what he needs to feel like none of this was his fault. 

 

“If it hadn't have been for Eddie I wouldn't have had anyone come visit me in the hospital,” Richie sobs loudly, as patched up wounds reopen and he cries even harder, “He never used to miss a visit and let I him get thrown about like a piece of rubbish!”

 

It’s killing Kate to see Richie this upset and tries once again to make him see reason; as much as it hurts to say it Eddie is gone. He lived a good and full life though, and Kate prays that Richie will be able to see past all this horror and remember his Uncle as he was when he was alive.  

 

“But that’s not him Richie, that’s just a shell,” Kate explains as calmly as she can, Richie’s tear strained eyes looking up at her, “The parts that made Eddie, Eddie have already gone on to someplace safe, ok?”

 

He’s looking back and forth between her and the Tupperware box and Kate is hoping that he’s remembering all the fun and happy times with Eddie, not the awful ones like finding his dead body or almost having swallowed half of him. Stroking his hair gently, she wills it all to make sense in his head; hopefully Richie just needs a little time to process all this. His rapid breathing has calmed down a lot more now and he turns away and buries his head in her chest and holds onto her tighter. 

 

“You think so?” he asks her and she can hear the quiet desperation in his voice, “You really think he’s ok, I didn't hurt him did I?”

 

“Of course you didn't hurt him,” Kate says softly as she rubs the back of his neck, “Eddie’s doing just fine Richie.”

 

Richie’s breath hitches and huge tears rolling slowly down his cheeks as he looks really frightened now, almost like _he’s_ the one that did something terrible to Eddie. 

 

“I didn't mean to Kate,” he says desperately, “I didn't mean to swallow him! I was trying to tell her to stop and-”

 

“Shhh,” Kate says softly as she wraps her arms around him, “It’s ok; It wasn’t you’re fault.”

 

Richie’s eyes go wide again and he looks absolutely striken, much to Kate’s confusion, and he’s practically brimming with agitation.

 

“I’m sorry,” he says suddenly, as he tries to pull away from her, like he’s done something wrong, “I shouldn’t be getting upset, not when she said all that stuff about your mom.” 

 

“Don’t be silly,” Kate scolds as she pulls him back towards her, “You wanna lay down for a little bit?”

 

She gives him a rather tight smile as she tries to not to let it show how much Vanessa’s comments had stung.Hearing that poison spill out of Vanessa’s mouth had been heartbreaking for her, but she can’t let Richie shoulder the burden for that as well; thats for her to sort out in her own head. Richie still looks far too lost and frightened for Kate’s liking, so she gently pushes him to lay down on the bed next to her. At first he’s all stiff but then he melts into Kate’s body, his arms limp and dangling like a doll either side of her. Without even being aware of it, Kate’s left hand rises to stroke his back, it’s such an automatic movement for them, as she tries to comfort him. Then he begins to cry softly, wetting her chest and perhaps Kate just needs to let him cry all the pain out. 

 

“You’re all right,” she whispers in his ear as she strokes his hair and his crying lessons somewhat, “You just have a good cry.”

 

He’s quiet for a long time after that and Kate had thought he’d fallen asleep when he shifts off her a little and tugs her to lay beside him; their noses almost touching. Richie’s got his arm wrapped around the small of her back and he pulls her even closer as he kisses her forehead, his glasses digging in a little. She smiles at him and resumes stroking his ridiculously thick hair; his bed head is a thing of beauty. 

 

“You ok?” she asks quietly and he nods slightly at her, as she runs her hand along his bruised cheek, “You wanna stay like this for a bit.”

 

Richie nods again, resting his forehead against hers and kissing the inside of her wrist as her hand moves across his face. Kate loved to touch him, not in a sexual way this time, and she would run her hands over his face, his hands, his soft hair that fell in tousled locks. It was almost like she had to check he was real, that he was actually her’s to hold, to kiss and make love with. The warmth from his skin would seep into her and would comfort her without Richie ever having to open his mouth. They’d melt into each other like ice-cream on a hot summers day; never really knowing where one of them started and the other one ended. 

 

“You want to know what I wished for?” Richie asks her as he takes hold of her hand and interlocks their fingers, “When I blew out my candles?”

 

“What did you wish for baby?” Kate replies as she kisses his knuckles; she doesn't have the heart to tell him that you’re not supposed to say what you wished for. 

 

“Just to be happy,” he says, and his voice sounds far away, like he’s almost lost within himself, “I mean all of us…and to not get sick again.”

 

He adds the last bit on almost as an afterthought but Kate knows that scares Richie more than anything, that if he slips up just one more time that every good thing in his life that he worked so hard for will be taken away. 

 

“It wouldn't matter to me, you know that right?” Kate tells him forcefully, she needs him to understand that she would never abandon him, “I’d be with you every step of the way.”

 

She means every bit of it; she’d never let Richie go through all that turmoil and fear all by himself. Whatever Richie might think about himself, Kate has always only ever seen the goodness in him; that sweet, kind soul almost bursting out of him. Richie smiles at her, his proper smile, not he fake one he uses when he’s trying to convince Seth to let him borrow the car. Perhaps now they can start to put this awful night behind them and start a fresh, besides, Kate still has to give Richie his birthday present. After kissing him on the lips, she scoots back and jumps off the bed and can barely contain her excitement as Richie looks at her in confusion.

 

“This was supposed to be whole big thing with Seth, he even wrote a song to go with it” Kate says excitedly as she almost bounces up and down, “But seeing as Vanessa went and ruined it, you may as well have your present now.”

 

She’d had to censor half of what Seth referred to as his “Ode to Richard” because it was mostly full of rude words and more than once referenced the size of Richie’s manhood; and they say Richie is the weird one. Kate had been a bit more practical as Richie didn't like surprises very much, even now he's looking worried, but all that has fallen short thanks to Vanessa’s deluded fantasies. Plus, she would have needed Seth’s help with the routine she had been planning to act out. 

“It’s fine Kate,” Richie says as he takes his glasses off to clean them, “You didn't have to get me anything anyway; you’ve already done more than enough.”

 

“Richard Gecko,” she scolds as Richie looks up at her apprehensively, “If you think I wasn’t going to get you anything for your birthday then you were mistaken, now you have to keep you’re eyes shut until I tell you to open them, ok?”

 

Richie looks a little nervous but he relents and shuts his eyes tight, allowing Kate to slip quietly from the room and leave him with his very muddled thoughts. Seth and Kate had gone to so much effort for him and he felt like he’d somehow gone and ruined everything. Burt always tells him not to dwell on the negative but he can’t seem to help it ,and he gags a little as he thinks about consuming Eddie’s ashes. 

 

“You better still have your eyes shut!” Kate calls out to him, he’s still mulling everything over in his head when the bedroom door opens again, and he hears Kate’s soft footfalls creep towards; he’d kept his eyes tight shut just like he promised. 

 

Something wet licks his nose and Richie opens his eyes to find Kate standing in front of him, beaming, and holding a very wiggly puppy in her arms. His eyes go comically wide as he stares at the little puppy, who gives a wide yawn and wags it’s tail eagerly at him. It looks kind of small, and it’s wearing a very badly knitted jumper to disguise the fact that it’s got half it’s fur missing; what fur that’s left is back and tan fluff like Peaches had. There’s a big blue bow attached to it’s collar and one of it’s ears is a little lopsided, but that doesn't change the fact that it looks very happy to be there.  

 

“Richie,” Kate says excitedly as she holds the puppy out to him, “Meet Waffles; your new best friend!”

 

Waffles barks happily at the sound of his name and wriggles harder as he tries to get to Richie, who face isn't looking very happy considering he’s just been given a puppy. In fact, its almost like the shutters have come down over his eyes and that carefully constructed internal wall that Kate and Seth had spent so long chipping away at, only seems to rise higher.

 

“Babe?” Kate asks worriedly as she tries to keep a hold of Waffles, “What’s wrong?”

 

Richie just shrugs and looks away from her, his expression unreadable and Kate is almost at a loss as to what to do; Richie loves dogs! She had spent months planning with Seth about which dog Richie would like best, where they should get it from and going round all the different dog shelters in the area until they had found Waffles. Seth had even asked the adoption lady if Waffles could be trained to help with Richie’s mental health issues and five minutes later they had him booked into classes; Richie and Waffles were supposed to be starting next week!

 

“Come on,” she says jovially, as she tries to hand the puppy over again, “He won’t bite, he still has his puppy teeth!”

 

All she gets in return is a curt shake of the head as Richie looks down at the floor, his arms folded tight across his chest as he closes in on himself. Honestly? Kate had not expected her gift to go over so badly; she had been certain that Richie would be ecstatic about finally getting a dog. Maybe she should have thought about this a bit more, she thinks, as Waffles makes another bid for freedom from her arms. Perhaps owning a dog was too much for Richie right now; it hadn't been that long since Uncle Eddie had died and then there was his recent hospital stay and now Vanessa has turned out to be the stalker from hell. Something just doesn't feel right though; the two weeks Richie had spent in the psychiatric unit was just a little bump in the road and he had been doing great since then. She had even discussed it with Seth if they should hold back on getting Richie a dog, but even Seth had agreed that a dog would be really good for Richie.

 

“But,” Kate says, sounding slightly stricken as she secures Waffles more tightly to herself, “I thought you’d love a dog! You love dogs!”

 

It’s a well known fact that Richie is obsessed with dogs; there’s a little corgi puppy called Basil that lives down the street and Richie can’t let it walk by without petting it or asking the owner if he can throw the ball for him. Burt even brings his humungous dog Gibson, into Richie’s therapy sessions because he helps him to relax when he’s talking about something painful or difficult. Kate hadn't been entirely sure about Gibson at first; mainly because he was almost as big as she was _and_ he’d stuck his head straight up her dress when she had come to pick Richie up once. Why wouldn't Richie want a dog of his very own? Everything about this whole situation is just wrong, Richie won’t even _look_ at the puppy, which was basically unheard of for him.

 

“I can’t have a dog,” Richie says quietly, his voice sounding dull and flat as he keeps his eyes averted to the floor. 

 

Kate frowns as she picks up the fact that Richie used the word _can’t_ ; there’s clearly way more going on here, than Richie suddenly deciding that he somehow hates dogs all of a sudden. Waffles is such a cute little ball of fluff that anybody, let alone dog obsessed Richie, would want to take him home.

 

“What?!” she scoffs because he’s being silly now, “Babe, of course you can have a dog!”

 

She tries to hand Waffles over again but Richie physically moves away from her and Kate tries not to let herself be too upset by his actions. 

 

“I know you were just trying to be nice,” Richie informs her, sounding even more odd and detached then he did earlier, “but I’m afraid you’re just going to have to take him back from wherever you got him from.”

 

Kate stares at him, more than a little hurt, as Waffles starts to whine as he desperately tries to get to Richie once more; Kate had put an old t-shirt of Richie’s in his dog bed so he would recognise his new dad. 

“But… you love dogs,” Kate says incredulously as she stands there, growing increasingly disheartened, “Seth and I picked him out especially; that’s what we’ve been doing all this time!”

 

Richie gives her another weird shrug and seems to fold even further in on himself and Kate is really starting to worry now; maybe she should have waited until after she was sure that the whole Vanessa shit storm hadn't affected him too much. After being covered in you’re dead Uncles ashes and mentally and emotionally abused for the best part of an evening, perhaps a new puppy was too much for him to handle. 

 

“Look,” Richie says flatly, all though he’s talking more to the wall than to her, “I’m sorry you went to so much trouble but I can’t accept him.”

 

Richie _never_ speaks to her like that; his words sound bizarrely formal and detached, and he’s not even looked at the puppy once since Kate brought him in. Something is clearly very wrong here if Richie won’t even look at the dog that’s been making such a fuss to get to him ever since Kate brought him in. Holding Waffles tight to her chest, she comes to sit down next to Richie on the bed but he moves away from her, even when she reaches out to touch him. This is bad, she thinks, as not wanting to be touched was one of the biggest indications that Richie wasn’t feeling that great. 

 

“Do you want to tell me why you can’t have a dog?” she asks him gently, keeping her distance slightly so she won’t overwhelm him, but close enough that he knows that she’s right there with him.

 

When they had first started talking to each other, let alone dating, Richie had been very honest and upfront from the get go about his mental illness. It was ok if she couldn't handle it, he had told her, and he wouldn't want to be a constant reminder of what had happened to her mom. Admittedly, at first Kate had been unsure of pursuing a relationship with Richie, she didn't think she had the strength to lose another person she loved. However that doubt had only lasted for about five minutes, when she tried to imagine her life going forward without Richie in it, and had decided that just wasn't going to happen; they had been inseparable ever since. But now the warning Seth had given her, when he’d come knocking on her door in the middle of the night, is ringing in her ears. “If he won’t let you touch him, then you’ve got a problem” Seth had said and as Kate reaches out for him again, Richie pulls even further away from her. 

  

“I just…” Richie starts but then trails off as Waffles starts to whine and tries to jump out of Kate’s lap to get to him. Kate shushes him and settles him down so he can’t break free; his little paws resting on her leg as he looks over at Richie.

 

“You just what?” Kate asks and she almost afraid of the answer; if it has anything to do with snake vampires or Mayan demons, she’s going to tear out more than just Vanessa’s cheap ass hair extensions.

 

It had almost killed her when Richie had woken her up in the middle of the night and practically begged her to ring Seth, so he could take Richie back to the psychiatric hospital. He’d been pretty quiet ever since the ill fated dinner party, he hadn't been  sleeping properly either but Kate had prayed that it would blow over. It didn’t and when Richie had explained that he could feel the “gnawing in his head again,” Kate had spent a miserable two weeks without him. She wasn't on the visitor list and by the time the paper work would have had gone through, Richie would have been home so she’d had to rely on Seth for updates. Vanessa assumption that Seth had been going over to sleep with her was not only callous, but extremely upsetting; Kate could barely sleep or eat due to the worry. In the end Seth had found her in a ball on the bathroom floor, hardly the beginnings of an steamy affair, and it was then that she had told him all about her mom. He’d been so kind to her, not his usual cocky self, as he made her a cup of hot coco and told her that Richie was going to be just fine; he had the two of them to help him through this.  

 

“I don’t deserve a dog,” Richie mumbles as he continues to avoid looking at her, probably because he knows that Kate can read him like a book.

 

“What do you mean you don’t deserve a dog?” she frowns, “Of course you deserve a dog, it’s your birthday and that’s what birthdays are for!”

 

Even Seth had admitted that it was weird that Richie hadn't begged Uncle Eddie for a dog when Vanessa kicked him out, so she could kidnap Seth and take him to the suburbs. Eddie would have been all for a dog, he had a soft spot for Gibson as well, but Richie had never even mentioned it when he moved back in with his Uncle. When he’d first taken the boys in he had asked them if they wanted to get a new dog but Seth had told Richie to say no; Eddie had already been kind enough to look after them, he didn't need the added extra of a dog. During one of their long car rides out to various dog shelters, Seth had confessed that he’d felt pretty guilty about that. However what was more shocking was when they had first agreed on Waffles and Seth had abruptly pulled over to the side of the road, and confessed that his Pa had forced him to shoot Richie’s old dog, Peaches. Kate had been horrified that someone could hate their kids that much to make them kill an innocent animal, and she had reluctantly agreed not to tell Richie. 

 

“I don’t deserve this type of present, not of you and certainly not off Seth,” Richie informs her bluntly, “He’s already done far too much for me.”

 

Now we’re getting somewhere, Kate thinks, as she slides her hand over and gently brushes her fingers against his; thankfully this time Richie doesn't pull away. 

 

“That’s why you didn't ask for one before?” she asks him carefully, “Because you thought you didn't deserve one?”

 

She knew that there had to more too it then this and it doesn't take a genius to realise that Vanessa has had a hand in this somewhere; Kate is already regretting all the times she tried to be nice to that bitter cow. 

 

“Look, I know I’ve been a lot to deal with recently,” Richie admits but his hand finds hers and he grasps hold of it tightly, “Seth has had to put with more than his fair share and I just think it would be selfish of me to have a dog.”

 

“You think it’s selfish of you to get something you want?” Kate questions and she almost wants to add that he’s being ridiculous; it _anybody_ deserves anything nice out of all this then it’s Richie. Apparently Richie doesn't see it that way, as his breath starts to hitch and she can see tears start to form along the dark line of his lashes. 

 

 

 “Baby, what’s wrong?” Kate asks, concern eating away at her from the inside as she tries to remain calm; if Richie ends up back in the hospital because of all the stress, Kate is going to kick Vanessa’s ass all the way over to the next state. 

 

“It’s just… Seth’s always been there for me, he looked after me when most people would have just walked away,” Richie explains, his voice trembling with emotion as he looks at her with such sad eyes, “I said some really horrible things to him Kate, _and_ I wrecked his car _and_ I said weird stuff all the time and-”

 

“Richie; stop,” Kate says sharply as she grabs his hand extra tight, “I won’t let you do this to yourself. Seth knows you love him and that you couldn't help what you were doing back then.

 

“But I ruined his marriage!” Richie bursts out suddenly, his eyes full of tears, “Vanessa said if it hadn't have been for me, then they would have been fine! I wrecked everything for him!”

 

Kate’s nostrils flair and her eyes narrow as she realises that Vanessa has spilled all her poison into Richie and made him think it’s his fault that she’s got a crappy marriage. Well Kate isn’t having it, she’s not having that spiteful excuse for a human come into her house and make Richie feel like he’s to blame for all of this.

 

“Richie, you know thats not true!” she all but shouts, causing Waffles to jump a little, “Seth and Vanessa had been having problems long before she even met you!”

 

Eddie, Kate and Richie used to spend many an evening sitting up and discussing what a mess Seth had gotten himself into; it wouldn't be so bad if Vanessa didn't treat them all like something she had scraped off the bottom of her shoe. Neither of them could come up with any real solution, no matter how much Richie tried to think of one, and Eddie had gently explained that it wasn't his job to fix everything for Seth. Sometimes Richie seems to forget that he had just as shitty childhood as his brother.

 

“But he was supposed to have a better life than this!” Richie cries desperately and this time Waffles lets out a little yelp, “He wasn't supposed to go from being beat up by dad, to having to deal with a crazy brother and a failed marriage! I ruined everything for him!”

 

He’s full on crying now and Kate puts Waffles at the far end of the bed so she can pull Richie closer to her; Waffles seems to understand that he’s supposed to stay put and lays down patiently. 

 

“Seth doesn't need you to save him,” she explains as she strokes his hair as he grips the back of her dressing gown tightly, “Baby you did enough, more then you should have had to do, when you were kids.”

 

“But I want him to have a nice life!” Richie sniffles as he brushes the tears angrily away from his face, “Maybe he could have had that if it wasn't for me!”

 

Kate sighs sadly as she holds him close; its times like the that she could really do with Uncle Eddie still being around; he always had a way of making Richie see reason. There just seemed to be the block in Richie’s head, that put everybody else above his own needs and happiness and Kate wasn’t sure if she would ever be able to break through it. 

 

“Richie,” she says sternly as she tries to get him to see reason, “You saw what happened when we did the intervention.”

 

 

The intervention or, “that Dr Phil shit you two idiots pulled on me” as Seth referred to it, didn't go entirely according to plan. Once Richie had recovered from his stay in hospital, he had been adamant that he wanted to try and help Seth realise that he wasn't in a good place with his marriage. After talking it over, Kate and Richie had decided that _clearly_ the best solution would be to stage an intervention. For over a week they had practiced what they were going to say, taking it in turns roleplaying what they expected Seth’s responses would be so they wouldn't be caught off guard. Richie had even borrowed the “Talking Pillow” from Burt, so that they could each get their point across calmly without anyone interrupting. When they had decided they were ready, Richie had lured Seth over with the promise of unlimited beer, nachos and a movie. It didn't end up going very well; Seth instantly got annoyed with them once he realised that they didn't even have any beer and that they were trying to “Dr Phil” him. Using the “Talking Pillow” didn't work either, even when Richie explained that you had to start everything with “I Feel” and that nobody was allowed to interrupt you when you were holding it. When it was his turn, Seth had thrown it at his brothers head and told them both that they were being ridiculous; he didn't have a problem. Undeterred Kate and Richie had ploughed on with their intervention, even when Seth had started yelling at them, and tried to do what Burt had told them which was to “focus on motivation and not accusation”. However, when Richie had brought out the diagram he had specially made, which detailed the percentages of children who were abused ending up in abusive relationships, Seth had really gotten pissed at them. In the end, Richie had locked Seth in the bathroom and they had taken it in turns to read out passages from “Love Without Hurt: Turn Your Resentful, Angry, or Emotionally Abusive Relationship into a Compassionate, Loving One” to him, whist he yelled at them to let him out. Unfortunately their intervention pretty much fell apart after that, as Seth had faked a panic attack to get out and stormed off, but not before Richie had sneakily stuffed a load of self help leaflets into his coat pocket. Ever since then, Richie had been toying with the idea of kidnapping Seth and taking him to Eddie’s old cabin, but Kate had suggested that maybe they'd use that as a last resort.

 

“I know, but all that time he spent looking after me, he could have been working on his marriage,” Richie wails as the tears start to fall again, “Or he could have met someone nice and not had to follow me about to make sure I didn't do anything stupid!”

 

“Richie now you’re just being silly!” Kate informs him as she holds onto him tighter, cursing that awful woman for causing all this upset, “Besides, Seth wouldn't have just left you in that state just so he could chat up random people!”

 

Richie doesn't seem to be listening to her though, and he starts to cry harder then ever and Kate can tell that all the little insecurities that he has about not being wanted, or being a burden, to everyone are bubbling to the surface. 

 

 

“He should have just left me in there!” Richie cries, as tears splash down his cheeks.

 

This is about as much as Kate can stand, she’s not going to let Richie tie himself up in knots about something that was far beyond his control. Seth’s marriage was his and his alone to sort out; they had all tried with him but in the end it was up to Seth to sort out happened between him and Vanessa. That still doesn’t mean that Kate will ever forgive her or let her within five hundred yards of either herself or Richie. 

 

“Richie,” she asks reasonably, so she can have his full attention, and it works because Richie’s tears have calmed to a slow trickle now, “When you got out of the hospital, where did you tell Seth you wanted to live at first?”

 

Richie sniffs loudly and wipes the tears away from his face as he starts to get his emotions under control somewhat. Kate has always had this way of not making him feel like he wasn’t completely crazy and he can talk to her about anything; it just flows so easily between them. 

 

“I said I wanted to go into assisted housing,” he mumbles as he rests his head against her shoulder, “So I wouldn't be a burden to anyone.”

 

Apparently “someone” had tried to convince Richie that Seth would be better off if he just stayed away; it wasn't exactly difficult to work who that person could have been. 

 

“And what did Seth say when you told him?” Kate asks, even though she already knows the answer.

 

“He told me I was an idiot,” Richie says, his breath brushing up agains the soft skin of her neck, “And that I was coming home with him whether I liked it or not.”

 

“Exactly,” Kate says promptly, “Seth always wanted you to come back and live with him.”

 

Richie lifts his head up to look at her and Kate runs the pad of her thumb against his cheekbone; wishing she could brush all the sadness inside him away at the same time. Leaning in, she kisses him softly on the lips and is rewarded with him kissing her back just as gently.  

 

“But I should have tried harder not to be sick,” Richie mumbles as he pulls away, “Maybe-”

 

“Richie it doesn't work like that,” Kate says as she cuts him off, “You _know_ that.”

 

“Yeah, I know,” Richie concedes quietly, “I just wish I could make it better for him like he did for me.”

 

“Well you can start by accepting the present he brought you,” Kate says as she gestures to Waffles, whose little ears prick up, “ _Technically_ he did pay the fifty dollars adoption fee.”

 

She takes Richie’s glasses off and wipes away the tear stained smudges on the edge of her robe and then sets them back on his face; he’s starting a look a little bit less upset now. Hopefully some of his birthday is still salvageable, even though it’s way past midnight, and Richie will allow himself the happiness of _finally_ owning a dog. Kate has become very attached to the little fuzz ball over the past few weeks and she would hate to have to take him back to the shelter. Waffles had been sitting patiently at the end of the bed this entire time, almost as if he was listening to the whole conversation, but he trots over to them and climbs back onto Kate’s lap.  

 

 

“So, what are we going to do about this little guy then?” Kate asks, as she scratches one of Waffles ears, “Cus I think he’d quite like to stay here with you.”

 

Please say yes, Kate thinks, because Richie is still looking hesitantly at the little ball of fur sitting in her lap. If he really doesn't want the puppy then Kate isn't going to force Waffles on him; it just means that they’re looking at an even bigger problem. All of Kate’s hatred for Vanessa comes boiling back up to the surface as she watches Richie try and work out in his head if he’s worthy of a present like this. Regardless of what Seth does with his marriage, Vanessa is never, _ever_ setting foot near either her or Richie again. It was one thing to completely ruin Richie’s birthday, but to make him think that he shouldn't be entitled to the one thing he’s always wanted is another thing entirely. Waffles was supposed to show Richie that Kate and Seth had faith in him, that they believed that he was doing well enough to cope with the responsibility of owning a dog. Now Vanessa had ruined all that and seemingly obliterated all of Richie’s painstakingly, re-built confidence in himself; Kate saw first hand every day how hard Richie fought to keep his demons at bay. 

 

“You sure you don’t want to pet him?” Kate asks, purely because she knows that Richie is unlikely to be able to resist the lure of the puppy for too long, 

 

Tentatively, Richie reaches out his hand towards Waffles, who sniffs it eagerly; his little tail swishing back and forth against Kate’s chest. Please, Kate prays silently, please take the dog. He still seems unsure of the puppy, which is _so strange_ because Kate has had to physically pry him away from dogs of all shapes and sizes before.  

 

“He’s mine?” Richie asks her, looking up at her in somewhat disbelief, “To keep?”

 

Kate sends up a silent prayer, thanking whoever is up there looking after the pair of them, as she beams at Richie.

 

“Of course to keep!” she laughs as she picks Waffles up and set’s him down in Richie’s lap, “Here, you take him.”

 

Waffles jumps up at him, his tiny paws resting on Richie’s chest and sniffs him eagerly. Richie makes a weird sound, sort of a cross between a hiccup and a sob, and Kate is about to ask him what’s wrong when he becomes completely overwhelmed, and bursts into tears. 

 

“I,*hic*, always, *hic*, wanted, a, *hic*, dog!” Richie wails loudly, as tears pour down his face, “I, I, *hic*, just, *hic*-”

 

This is more the reaction Kate was hoping for, well maybe not the tears, as Richie scoops the puppy up into his arms as he starts to cry even louder. Waffles seems unconcerned by the noise going on above him, and he starts licking the salty tear tracks off Richie’s cheeks. It would probably be at this point that Seth would demand she take a picture, so he could tease his brother until the end of time, but Kate is too busy bursting with joy at how happy Richie is. She knew he just needed a bit of time to recover from earlier on, and that eventually he’d allow himself something nice for once. Richie tries to say something else to her, but all that comes out is more strangled sobbing.

 

“He’s, *hic*, so, *hic*, cute!” Riche eventually manages to get out between non-stop crying, “I’m, *hic*, so, *hic*, happy!”

 

He snuggles the puppy close to his face, his nose buried in Waffles’ soft fur, as he continues to cry; thankfully it’s tears of joy this time. Looking at him now, Kate wishes that they had gotten Richie a dog years ago. Waffles gives an excited little yip as he licks Richie’s nose; his little tail swishing back and forth.

 

“Baby it’s ok,” Kate tells him, even as her own eyes become blurry with tears, “You’re allowed to be happy!”

 

Richie gives her a big watery smile as he lifts Waffles up and kisses him on the nose, earning him more excited tale wagging and face licking. It’s almost too much for Kate and she gives into her emotions and lets out a loud sob of her own, causing Richie to look up at her in alarm. 

 

“These are happy tears!” she reassures him, as she rubs her sleeve against her eyes, “I’m just happy that you’re happy!”

 

It’s a good job it’s just the two of them, or three now, because they look like a pair of emotional wrecks; what with there blotchy red skin and tear strained faces. Kate just can’t help herself though, and she let out a loud sniffle as Waffles gives her a little yip and wags his tail. Richie is still smiling at her, like he can’t believe that she’s actually got him a little furry buddy of his own, and he grasps her hand tightly. 

 

 

“Thank you,” he chokes out, as tears stream down his face and splash onto Waffles fur, “This is the _nicest_ thing anyone’s ever done for me.”

 

Kate beams back at him, her breath hitching with emotion as she holds onto his hand extra tight. She’s been so afraid that she was going to lose him again, that Vanessa’s cruelty and spite had caused too much damage for him to be able to cope. Richie was stronger than that though, he’d fought his way back to her and to himself and Kate couldn't be more proud of him. 

 

“Awww honey,” Kate says as she strokes her thumb across the back of his hand, “You’re welcome; I just wanted to do something special for you on your birthday.”

 

Richie sets Waffles down carefully to one side and pulls Kate close to him, kissing her deeply as their foreheads rest peacefully against each other. He pulls back slowly and Kate hears herself sigh at the loss of his soft lips pressed agains hers. There’s an expression on his face that’s pure emotion and his eyes are dark and deep as they seem look right down into her soul. 

 

“I know that sometimes you think you weren’t enough, or you didn't do enough, for your mom to want to stay alive,” Richie tells her quietly, as he brushes her hair off her face and strokes her cheek with his thumb, “But your wrong about that Kate Fuller, none of that was down to you. I just want you to know that you’ll always be more than enough for me; you’re my whole world.”

 

Kate feels her breath hitch as his words hit her; trust Richie to know exactly what had been gnawing at her. Vanessa’s words had picked at the scab that never seemed to fully heal; maybe her mom really didn't want to be around her? Maybe her singing didn't really mean anything? Her mothers suicide was something that she still isn't quite sure she understands but Richie’s words, as always, do more that just comfort her. They make her see that even though her mother is gone and nothing can change that, she was still loved and she carries her mothers memory with her everyday. They pull each other close again, Richie brushing fallen tears away from Kate’s cheeks, as their lips meet again. Kate is almost pulling him down on top of her when Waffles lets out a loud bark and he starts jumping all over them, trying to push his little snout in between them. 

 

“I think someone doesn't like being ignored!” Kate chuckles as she reluctantly let’s go of Richie and Waffles back bounds into his lap.

 

“Sorry little buddy,” Richie coos as the puppy starts chewing the tie to his robe, “Mom and Dad won’t ignore you again.”

 

Kate laughs out loud; she’s more than happy to be Waffles’ new “Mom” and Richie looks like he’s going to make the perfect puppy parent. Perhaps now Basil the Corgi’s owners will be able to get more than two feet down the road without Richie stopping them.

 

“Where did you get him?” Richie asks excitedly as Waffles jumps up to lick his face, “Did Seth help you?”

 

“Yeah, we picked him out at the dog shelter that’s down near the old bowling alley,” Kate explains as Waffles scratches his ear with his leg, “I just saw him and _knew_ he was the one for you.”

 

She decides to leave out the part about Waffles unfortunately having the same name as Seth’s sex code; Richie really didn't need to know that. He’d already had his name at the shelter and Kate didn't think it was fair to change it, plus the name “Waffles” just seems to suit him.

 

“He looks just like Peaches!” Richie exclaims as he scratches Waffles underneath his chin, “But his ears are more floppy than her’s were.”  

 

Waffles barks excitedly again as Richie picks him back up again and coos over him; he doesn't seem to want to let go of his new companion. Seth and Kate had seen what felt like hundreds of dogs before Kate had found Waffles and as soon as she saw that little fluffy face, she knew he’d be coming home with her. Evidently she had been right because now she’s seen the pair together, there’s no other dog she could even think about handing over to Richie. Waffles just seems to _get_ his new dad and they already look like they're going to become inseparable. 

 

 

“The lady at the shelter told me he was on the Kill List,” Kate explains as she leans over and smoothes Waffles’s jumper down, “I couldn't live with myself if I just left him there.”

 

It had almost been impossible to keep it a secret that she had got Richie his very own dog; they told each other everything and she had almost given herself away more than once. Seth kept teasing her that she would be demoted to second best once Richie got his hands on the puppy, “You’ve got no idea what you’ve let yourself in for Princess,” is what he kept saying to her but Kate had somehow managed to keep a lid on it. Once they had actually picked Waffles, Kate could barely contain her excitement and she had been desperate to see the look on Richie’s face once she finally handed his present to him. Granted, it hadn’t gone exactly the way she had wanted it to, but at least the moment hadn’t been completely ruined.    

 

 

“Why was he on the kill list?” Richie asks her, his eyes filling up with anger, and Kate is willing to bet good money that he’s already working out some way of rescuing all the other dogs at the shelter.

 

“He had a broken paw as well, apparently nobody wanted him, and they only have so much room even though he’s just a puppy,” Kate say’s sadly, “They were going to put him down a week after I spotted him.”

 

Richie looks aghast that anyone could even _think_ about killing Waffles and he holds the dog tighter against his chest; covering the puppies ears so he doesn't hear that he was going to be killed off for not looking right.

 

“Nobody's gonna hurt you Waffles,” he tells Waffles quietly as he strokes his head, causing Kate to break into a ridiculous smile of her own.

 

“They found him in one of those awful puppy mills and he’s got a skin infection due to the bad conditions,” Kate explains, “Look, I’ll show you.”

 

She lifts the jumper up to expose Waffles back where all his fur is missing and the skin is scabby and inflamed, causing Richie to gasp out loud. It looks a lot worse than it actually is but it still makes Kate sad every time she sees it; thankfully Waffles wasn't scratching himself as much anymore. 

 

“Oh buddy!” he tells the little dog as he cuddles Waffles closer to him, “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

 

“I think him scratching it was taking it worse,” Kate explains, “But hopefully I’ve put a stop to that now.”

 

 

“Is that why he has this cool jumper on?” Richie asks as he takes a better look at the outfit Waffles is wearing; Kate had tried to knit a W but it looks more like a wobbly M, “Because of his skin?”

 

Kate smiles brightly; Seth had made some very derogatory comments about her knitting skills. Admittedly, she hadn't quite got the shape right yet, but it was better than “Looking like a bag of crap” which was how Seth described it. It had taken her a few attempts to get it right, she kept forgetting the head hole, but Waffles didn't seem to mind and it served it’s purpose of keeping his skin protected.

 

“Yeah; I made it for him so he doesn't get cold whilst we’re waiting for his fur to grow back,” Kate says proudly, “I’ve got some shampoo that the vet gave me and some cream that we have to use on him but he’ll be fine in a couple of weeks.” 

 

“You here that Waffles?” Richie asks the dog, who is still eagerly sniffing him, “Your mom says you’re going to be fine!”

 

Kate can’t help but laugh as Richie’s dog obsession comes out in full force; this is what she had wanted to see, the ridiculously goofy grin of his. It’s seeing Richie so happy that’s starting to make her feel even more guilty about kicking Seth out of the house. What Vanessa did was entirely down to her and it wasn’t like Kate was blaming Seth for his wife’s horrible behaviour, but she had just been so angry at him; she had told him not to bring Vanessa. When Seth had told her that Vanessa, who hated Richie and Kate purely on principle, was insistent that she wanted to come to Richie’s birthday party, it had roused her suspicions instantly. Vanessa had never bothered coming to any of Richie’s other birthdays, so why was she so adamant about coming to this one? Clearly because she had created her own little work of fiction, Kate thinks to herself, and was hell bent on ruining what was supposed to be a special occasion for everyone. Pushing Vanessa out of her mind for now, Kate turns her attentions back to Richie; Vanessa has spoilt enough for them already.

 

“I got him a little coat to wear as well,” Kate says, her mind straying to the giant bag downstairs that’s full of dog stuff, “My knitting skills aren't quite up to that standard yet!”

 

Richie doesn't seem to think so and he give’s Waffles’ jumper another once over; his finger tracing over the weird looking W on the front. At first she had tried to knit Waffles’ full name, but had quickly given up when she realised how difficult it was to knit in a car whilst Seth Gecko was constantly taking the piss out of you. “He’s gonna get laughed out of the dog park if you put that thing on him,” Seth kept telling her, but Kate persisted until she had made something that vaguely resembled a proper jumper. Thankfully it had fitted Waffles when she first tried it on him, although he did try and eat it at one point, causing Seth to laugh and call him “defective”. 

 

 

“You should make these for all the other dogs who haven’t got homes yet Kate,” Richie says seriously, as Waffles starts chewing his fingers, “I wouldn't them to get cold as well.”

 

Kate hadn't even thought of that; Seth had teased her so much about her admittedly bad knitting skills that she had given up on making anything else. She had thought about knitting them all a jumper for christmas, mainly just to spite Seth, but it was kind of hot to be wearing wooly jumpers in Kansas. 

 

“He’s been staying at Seth’s office until it was time to give him to you, that’s why I had the-”

 

“Don’t,” Richie cuts in as he looks up at her, “Don’t feel like you have to explain what you were doing with Seth. I know you two weren’t having an affair.”

 

Kate smiles at him; even though she knows she’d done nothing wrong, it was a relief to hear him say that. It still doesn't make it any less awkward knowing that Seth has practically seen her naked _and_ that Vanessa had been creeping around their home at the dead of night. Granted, Kate had given out as much as she had taken, she wasn't just going to stand there and let Vanessa destroy her relationship with Richie or talk shit about her mom. She can feel the bruise above her eye is getting bigger by the second and if she’s honest with herself, Vanessa had been scary tonight. It was almost like she had finally showed them who she really was, that the perfect facade that she desperately clung onto had finally crumbled away, and revealed the monster underneath. Maybe she did really love Seth but that’s not how you show love, Kate thinks to herself as she recalls all the times Seth had blown Richie off just to avoid enduring Vanessa’s wrath. Kate could easily hang out with Seth on her own, they’d had a good time on their road trip to get Waffles, but she can’t exactly see Richie doing the same with Vanessa. When you got right down to it; Vanessa clearly didn’t want the added extra that came with Seth, Richie, but that didn't give her the right to just try and push Richie _and_ Uncle Eddie out of his life. They’d all tried to be nice to her, even when it was clear that Vanessa couldn't give a shit, purely because they all loved Seth so much. At least they won’t have to see Vanessa ever again, which is probably one of the very few good things to come out of this evening.  

 

“I wish Vanessa would have just asked what was going on,” Richie says quietly, as Waffles nibbles his fingers, “Instead of saying all the horrible stuff about your mom and telling me I should…”

 

He trails off and Kate watches him sadly as he quietly strokes Waffles’ tiny ears before he starts speaking again; his eyes averted to the floor.

 

“Even though she was mean to me and would say horrible stuff when Seth wasn't around,” he tells her, “I just thought that if Seth loves her and he’s happy then I could live with it.”

 

Kate is almost bursting to point out that whatever Vanessa had been telling him was all lies and that he should, never have had to put up with that but instead she remains silent and listens patiently to him. It’s almost like she can _feel_ that there is a lot more going on here than what Richie is telling her. 

 

“You know what she said, about me killing myself,” Richie mumbles as he swallows nervously, it’s not something he likes to talk about a lot, “She’s kind of said that to me before and other stuff.”

 

Kate’s eyes go wide and she’s already halfway to her feet and running all the way to Seth’s house and knocking Vanessa’s teeth out; _how_ could you possibly think it’s ok to say that to someone? Richie was in such a vulnerable place back then, and a shudder runs through her at what potentially could have happened, if Vanessa had managed to twist her claws into him. How can one person be made up of so much cruelty? Richie still looks really miserable and Waffle’s licks the back of his hand, seemingly to try and get him to cheer up; clearly he’s going to be top of his puppy class. Kate doesn't want to push, but it seems like her hunch was right and there _is_ a lot more going here. Vanessa barely has anything to do with Richie _now_ but back when she was living with him, she could have been filling his head with all sorts of junk. 

 

“That woman is never, ever setting foot in this house again!’ Kate snarls angrily as her hands ball up into fists and she’d quite like to hit something right now, “Never!”

 

“What?!” Richie exclaims, taking Kate completely off guard, “No, you can’t do that!”

 

“What do you mean no?!” Kate demands; she didn't think that this would be up for debate!

 

Richie looks at her with those big sad eyes of his and Kate can already tell he’s found yet _another_ way to blame himself for Seth’s failed marriage. He should be happy that he never has to put up with that terrible woman again. Vanessa had spat in his face, slapped him and said a multitude of unforgivable things to him; that alone should warrant changing the locks.

 

“But if Seth loves her and if she makes him happy,” he explains, as if not wanting a deranged woman bullying him is asking for too much, “Then I don’t want to get in the way of that.”

 

Kate lets out a heavy sigh and sits back down next to him, she gets it, she gets that Richie just wants his brother to be happy but she doesn't see why that has to be at his own expense. At this point, Kate is over caring if Seth loves his wife or nor; it’s Richie she’s concerned about. By all accounts, Seth relationship was in the ditch long before he got married or Vanessa had even met Richie. 

 

“Richie, that woman is poison!” Kate all but shouts as she tries to remain calm, “You should be more concerned about getting Seth away from her!”

 

“But-” Richie tries but Kate cuts him off; she doesn't want him thinking that he has to put up with this behaviour a moment longer.

 

“Look I’m sorry but I'm putting my foot down here,” Kate says sternly as she folds her arms across her chest, “She said things to you that are beyond cruel, you don't have to put up with that just because its what you think Seth wants!”

 

“What if I talked to her, made her realise that there was no affair?” Richie begs and Kate can’t help but be a little bit suspicious of why he’s going to the bat for Vanessa all of a sudden.  

 

“Have you told Seth any of this?” she asks him, it’s pretty unlikely that he has; Seth would blow a gasket if he knew, “I’m pretty sure he’d like to know what his wife’s been saying to you.”

 

“No,” Richie mumbles as he strokes Waffles underneath the chin, “I just thought he was happy so I just kind of let her…”

 

Of course you did, Kate thinks, as she removes the bow of Waffle’s collar; he’d chewed most of it to pieces by now. If Seth had known that any of this was going on , Kate might have spared the misfortune of ever actually having to meet Vanessa. It had been her first proper Family Dinner and by all accounts it was an eventful one. Kate had been raised with good, religious values and she accepted anyone willingly into her heart; that is until she met Vanessa. From the moment Vanessa had looked her up and down in that disparaging way of hers, it was clear the two women were not going to get on. 

 

“Richie, you didn't let her do anything,” she sighs sadly, as she fiddles with the shredded bow in her hands, “She took advantage of you when you were in a really vulnerable place, that’s not right.”

 

“I just want to do something right by him for once,” Richie mumbles miserably as he lays down with his head in her lap, “I messed everything else up by being all crazy and deranged.”

 

“Hey,” she says, as she pokes him gently in the ribs, “We don’t say that word, do we?”

 

“No,” Richie concedes heavily, as Waffles climbs over his legs to come and snuggle in next to him, “Ok, when I was unable to see reason and he had to take care of me when I was doing weird stuff.”

 

“Richie you can help Seth by being honest with him,” Kate offers as she tries to stop Waffles from chewing on his hair, “Telling him what his wife is really like would be a good start.”

 

“Yeah,” Richie says quietly, before he looks up at her in a slightly panicked way, “But what if he _is_ really happy and I mess it up for him?”

 

Kate can’t really see how _anyone_ could be happy putting up with Vanessa for extended periods to time; maybe she had some secret hidden qualities that they didn't know about? Knowing Seth it was probably something to do with sex or car maintenance. 

 

“Richie, do you not think that he would rather know what she’s been saying to you,” Kate asks him and she can almost hear the cogs in his brain shifting around as what she’s saying sinks in, ”Seth loves you more than anything in else in the world.”

 

Seth might tease Richie or bicker with him or make fun of him for all the “Nerdy shit” he likes to read, but he would do _anything_ for his brother. Like, if Richie had accidentally killed someone, Seth would be right there with a shovel to hide the evidence. They’d been through so much together, both as kids and as adults, that their bond is unbreakable and it’s something that Kate feels should be nurtured; not torn apart.  

 

“I hate her,” Richie admits miserably, but quietly like he’s worried Vanessa will pop to from somewhere and yell at him.

 

“Me too,” Kate says, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up and she can’t help but lean over and take a quick look under the bed. 

 

Thankfully, Vanessa doesn't crawl out from underneath there like something out of a horror movie but Kate edges closer to Richie anyway. When Waffles gets a bit bigger, she’s taking him to guard dog training; woe betide anyone that tries to break into her house _then_. She pats Waffles on the head and he lets out a loud sneeze and falls over, perhaps he might need a bit of training before Kate has him patrolling the back yard. Something brushes her hair to one side and Kate leans her the side of her face into Richie’s palm, smiling down at him as he moves to caresses her face.

 

“I’m sorry you had to hear all that stuff, the stuff she said about you’re mom,” Richie says, shaking his head almost at the thought that anyone could be that cruel, “That was a terrible thing to say.”

 

“God will serve his judgement on Vanessa,” Kate tells him, sounding a little more fire and brimstone then she had intended, but she wouldn't mind the big guy throwing down a bolt of lightening straight onto Vanessa’s head. 

 

Kate’s too caught up in her bible rhetoric to notice that Richie is starting to look really worried again, until he sits bolt up right and grabs her by the hand. 

 

“I really don’t want her around him,” he says frantically as Waffles lets out a loud yip; he didn't take too kindly to being dislodged, “It’s like he turns into this different person. What if she hits him as well? I can’t let him go through that again!”

 

Kate’s nostrils flair as she glances at the livid bruise thats blossoming across Richie’s cheek. It looks even worse against his alabaster skin and Kate is already wishing that she had hit Vanessa harder when they were fighting. At least she got a good jab in with her palm heel strike to Vanessa’s nose; Richie had taught her that one. 

 

“Babe, I don’t think you can do anything until he accepts that there’s a problem,” Kate sighs unhappily as Richie slumps back down defeatedly and Waffles reclaims his spot on his chest, “He’ll come around; he can’t be that stupid.”

 

“Yes he can,” Richie grumbles as he pets Waffles on the head, “The other day he told me that he’d only just realised that the dial on the toaster is for minutes, not level of toastyness!”

 

“Ok,” Kate says, glossing over the fact that Seth is a grown adult man and can’t even use a toaster, “Well, maybe we do another intervention or write down all the stuff Vanessa has done so he can have a clearer picture?”

 

“I guess,” Richie sighs; he’s feeling a bit more like himself now and the thought of waiting around for Seth to realise he’s living with a person who is abusive is too much. 

 

Seth could have sat there all day until he was blue in the face, telling Richie that Culebra’s weren’t real but in the end, it took a five year stint in a mental hospital and copious amounts of drugs to convince him other wise. He doesn't think he can wait five years for Seth to come to the same conclusion about Vanessa as he and Kate have. Anything could have happened by then, he thinks wildly, and Seth could be even more entrenched than he is now; it took his brother _ages_ to realises that what their dad was doing to them was wrong. Perhaps if Richie had said something sooner then they would have had to suffer through all that, but he doesn't really like to dwell on that. 

 

“What if she convinces him that we’re the ones that are in the wrong?” he panics wildly, “ Or tells him that he’s not allowed to come and see us?”

 

Kate didn't like to admit it but she had been thinking the same thing. Seth had a massive blind spot when it came to Vanessa, which seemed to be fuelled by not making her angry; which now they can all see is a very bad idea. Vanessa had stuck her nose in before and Kate had been livid when Seth had called and blamed the pair of them for Vanessa’s stupid dinner party going wrong. She’d been so mad that she’d pulled the phone out of Richie’s hand and yelled at Seth before slamming the phone down. They’d gotten a phone call in the middle of the night from Seth, sounding like he was whispering from inside a closet, and explained that he didn't really blame them; Vanessa was just being insufferable about it. It was too late though, the damage had already been done and the painful bits in Richie’s head that made him think that he wasn't fit to be around people had already started twisting. Two days later Richie was back in the psychiatric ward and Kate was left to pick up the pieces of a shattered heart. One would hope that seeing Vanessa’s little display earlier on, would be all the proof Seth needed that his wife was cruel, sadistic manipulator. 

 

“Well, we won’t let the happen,” Kate promises him, as she leans down to kiss him, “We’ll make him see sense.”

 

Richie nods, a look of determination spreading across his face and Kate’s not sure if thats a good thing or not; Richie has some pretty out there ideas when it comes to helping people. Maybe a staged kidnapping or tying Seth to a chair until he sees reason wasn't such a bad idea though. When Seth had been over to help them redecorate you could just tell that he didn't want to leave, they’d had a right laugh just the three of them, but then Vanessa would start blowing up Seth’s phone and he’d dash off out the door, grumbling to himself. Richie had even started buying his brother’s favourite beer and filling the fridge with it, in the hopes of either making him want to stay or getting him so drunk that he had to sleep on the couch. 

 

On the rare occasions that he had stayed over, Seth had eventually admitted, under much duress and bottles of beer, that he wasn't happy in his marriage. Richie and Kate had practically been ringing up divorce lawyers, only for him to brush it off again the next day. It had always seemed highly suspicious to Kate, when she found out that Seth hadn't even _told_ Richie that he was married until _after_ he had been released from the hospital. He had claimed that it was because Richie didn't do so well with change and he didn't want to impeded his brothers progress; Kate was pretty sure it had less to do with Richie being sick and more to with Richie being able to tell that his brothers marriage wasn't working. 

 

“Tomorrow can we take Eddie to the reservoir? Richie asks abruptly, as he looks sadly over at the Tupperware box,  “I don’t want anything else to happen to him.”

 

The box is only half full and there’s definitely a lot less in there, than there was in the urn but Kate doesn't really want to think about that right now. She had done the best she could and could only pray that Eddie wouldn't be too upset about ending up all over the carpet. Or he could do them all a favour and go and haunt Vanessa until the end of time. 

 

“Of course we can,” she tells him, glad that he’s moved off the topic of Seth for a bit, “We’ll make it really special for him.”

 

“It’s just hard… saying good bye to him,” Richie mumbles, his eyes downcast, “I feel like if I let him go then that’s it; he really won’t be around anymore.”

 

Kate smiles sadly at him; she knows that feeling all too well.  

 

“God would see fit to give us more time,” she tells him, taking his hands in hers, “I can only pray that we will be reunited with him in the next and until then, Eddie will be up there watching over us.”

 

Richie isn't at all religious but he likes going to church with Kate because it’s important to her; even if he did get into a debate with the pastor about the validity of science in religion. It’s the family aspect of the church that he likes the most, and to hear her sing, plus all the old ladies seem to love him. When his Uncle had first died, Kate had spent a lot of nights sitting up with Richie and explaining how God was looking after Eddie now; he seemed to find a lot of comfort in that. 

“I’d like that,” Richie sniffles, as he pushes his glasses up and wipes the tears away from his eyes, “It’s nice to think he’s sitting up there somewhere, looking down on us or hanging out with all those old movie stars he loved.”

Kate beams at him; happy that Richie seems to be feeling a bit better about Eddie, now that they've decided on where his final resting place will be. Her dad was right; the ashes are just a shell. Richie is looking at her carefully, those big eyes of his looking right down into her.

 

“You know what I think?,” he asks her, as he tucks her hair behind her ear, “I bet Eddie is hanging out with your mom up there, telling her what an awesome daughter she has.”

 

Now it’s Kate’s turn to cry and she feels her eyes start to well up as she gives him a watery smile.

 

“You think so?” she asks him, as he brushes the tears of her cheek.  

 

“I know so,” Richie tells her as he leans in and kisses her softly on the lips, “He’s probably bragging to her about the time he thought he saw Robert Redford at the seven eleven.”

 

Kate kisses him in return, his soft lips sliding over hers and suddenly she doest feel like she can let him go. Wrapping her arms around his neck and pulls him close to her as they kiss, more intensely this time, as she pulls his robe open. Richie’s warm body slides against her, Kate hadn't even realised that her own robe had come undone, and a familiar heat begins to pool in her groin as Richie’s lips move slowly down her neck; his large hand caressing her breast. It’s not so much sex that they both want, more of a desire to be as close to each other as possible. Her hands glide over the well defined muscles of his chest, lower and lower until he groans low in her ear. 

 

“Richie,” Kate sighs, as she feels him, half hard and warm against her thigh.

 

He’s kissing his way down between her breasts now, his tongue encircling her nipples before he moves further down, and Kate lets out a loud moan as he wriggles his way back up her; his hand moving gently between her legs. 

 

“Kate,” he murmurs, as he traces his lips across her neck again, each kiss punctuated by a soft sigh.

 

The pads of his fingers are rubbing gently against her wetness, one long finger dipping just slightly inside of her and Kate can’t help but let out another moan. Her legs slide further apart and her hips buck a little as she tires to get him to add more pressure; she can feel him smiling against her skin. Slowly, almost irritatingly so, his forefinger slides inside her, bending slightly and caressing her insides as it moves leisurely back and forth. Kate can’t help but bite down on her bottom lip as he adds a second finger but the movement is faster this time and Richie’s mouth moves to her breast; teasing her nipple with his teeth. Then the pad of his thumb moves up to brush against her clitoris, and this time Kate doesn't even bother to hold back, as she lets out a loud sigh of pleasure. Rolling her head to the side, she slides her fingers through Richie’s thick hair, gripping down on it as he adds more pressure to her clit. Her toes have bunched up and Kate can feel her legs start to tremble as his fingers move faster and faster; her skin flushing red as her pleasure starts to peak. She’s aching for him to be inside her but, before she can even make a sound, Richie’s hand retreats and Kate lets out a grumble of protest.

 

“Baby, why’d you stop?” I was-” he doesn't even let her finish and instead, he grabs her by the ankles and drags her down the bed, his body moving flush between her legs and she can feel every hard inch of him against her stomach. He smirks down at her and Kate rolls her eyes at him before she leans up to kiss him; making sure to add a little friction to his cock. It works and Richie’s head drops to her shoulder as he lets out a loud moan, allowing Kate to slip her hand between them and wrap her hand around him.

 

“You like that?” she breaths as she strokes him with short firm movements, he’s too big for her to get her hand all the way around in this position, but Richie seems to enjoy it none the less.

 

“Kate,” he moans into her hair as his hips buck into her hand, “Fuck.”

 

Hopefully, Kate thinks, only she’s just remembered that the stupid condoms are all the way downstairs; it’s very evident that Richie is _more_ than ready to go. Richie lets out another load moan and Kate is trying to decide which one of them should go get them, when something heavy lands on her head.

 

“What the?” she yelps, as she twists around to find a furry little face trying to stick it’s way in between them. 

 

Waffles lets out a loud whine as Richie rolls off Kate and looks up at the little intruder; who seems very pleased the attention is back on him. Having your new four legged ball of fluff trying to jump on top of you when you’re trying to have sex is kind of a mood killer, and Richie and Kate reluctantly break apart. Whilst Richie lays on his back with his eyes closed, probably trying to will his erection away, Kate pulls her robe back around her and scoops the over excited puppy up.

 

“I don’t think he likes his Mom and Dad making out in front of him,” Kate giggles as Waffles breaks free and starts jumping all over Richie. 

 

“Maybe Mom and Dad can have some fun later on,” Richie says suggestively as he pulls his own robe closed around him; Kate’s eyes lingering on his groin for a while.

 

“Mom is definitely down for that,” Kate smirks as she slips of the bed and goes to get them both some clean sleepwear, as Richie fusses over Waffles. 

 

They’d probably have to train Waffles to learn when “Mom and Dad” needed some alone time; Kate loves the little munchkin but she’s not about to let him get in the way of her Richie time. Opening the, she pulls out one of Richie’s old t-shirts but when she goes to grab herself some sleep shorts, her eyes land on her eyes land on the tiny lace thong at the back of the draw. Suddenly it feels like she’s got ants crawling all over her skin and an image of Vanessa peering up at her from under the bed pops into her head, how could someone be that creepy?! Quickly grabbing some boxers and a t-shirt for Richie, Kate feels her face flush and slams the draw shut; those panties are going straight in the trash later. 

 

 

“Kate?” Richie calls out as he pauses fussing over Waffles, “What’s wrong?”

 

Unfortunately, she can’t suppress the shudder that runs through her and Richie sits up to look over at her again, setting Waffles down to onside. Kate gives him a tight smile as she sets his clothes down and quickly changes into her sleepwear; it feel like there are eyes all over her.

 

“Kate?” he says again, as he pulls on the clothes she laid out for him, whilst Waffles tries to chase his own tail.

 

It’s pointless to lie to him, not when he’d been so honest with her about everything he had been feeling. Pulling her robe tightly around herself and belting it shut, she climbs into Richie’s lap and rests her chin on his shoulder. His skin smells clean but there’s that hint of muskiness that always smell so good to her and she plants a small kiss on his shoulder. Waffle’s is still distracted by his tail, so he doesn't make so much of a fuss when Richie wraps his arm around her waist and lays them both down on the bed; side by side. They’re almost nose to nose and Riche’s glasses have gone crooked against the bedspread, but she can’t help but smile as he leans in and kisses the tip of her nose. 

 

“What’s the matter Humming Bird?” he asks her as he brushes her hair away from her face.  

 

“I just can’t believe she did that,” Kate mutters and she can’t help but glance around the room, just incase Vanessa is still lurking around somewhere, “You know… watched us whilst we were having sex.”

 

Her face flushes even as she says it, and now she’s even starting to feel paranoid that someone could have been watching them when they were getting down to business earlier. Pulling her robe tighter around herself, Kate tries not to think about just how many other times Vanessa had spied on them. The picture and the video were bad enough but it was the locket that was most troubling her; she _knew_ that somebody was in the house that night. Clearly Richie is thinking the same thing because he pulls her closer, not in the lustful way like before but protectively; almost like he was trying to shield her with his own body. Kate also doesn't miss how his eyes linger in the darkest corners of their bedroom, and she is already planning on cleaning everything from top to bottom.

 

“Maybe we should check for camera’s,” Richie wonders out loud as Kate cuddles him closer to him.

 

“She wouldn't do that would she?” Kate worries, as Waffles squeezes himself between their legs, “I mean, Vanessa would have told us, like she did about all the rest of the weird stuff she did, wouldn't she?” 

 

Or she just saved it all and has now posted it on the internet out of pure spite, Kate thinks to herself. She would literally curl up into a ball and die if that happened; it was bad enough that Vanessa had threatened to send the picture to her dad. 

 

“I don’t think she would have gone that far,” Richie says reasonably, “I think she was more interested in what she thought Seth was up to.” 

 

He’s so calm and rational about the whole thing that Kate is a tad surprised, not that she wants him to be upset, but after all Seth had a front row seat to Richie and Kate’s little sex show. Seth and Richie are very close, but Kate doubts that that extends to wanting to see each other naked or witnessing their nocturnal, or daytime, activities.  

 

“I’m throwing away those panties,” Kate says, much to Richie’s indignation.

 

“But I like those panties,” he pouts, as he slides his hand underneath her robe and along the top of her leg, “They look good on you.”

 

Goosebumps rise along her thigh and Kate swats him playfully on the arm, as his fingers move up into the inside of her shorts. 

 

“I think you prefer it when I’m out of them,” Kate snorts as Richie’s hand creeps dangerously close to the edge of her underwear. Thankfully, Waffles is still instant on being the centre of attention, and he wedges himself underneath Richie’s arm until Richie has not choice but to pull away. Rolling onto his back, he picks up Waffles up and sits him in the centre of his chest whist he scratches his ears. Definitely going to have to stop that, Kate thinks, as Waffles wags his tail happily. Securing her robe more tightly around herself, Kate casts one last look around the bedroom and tries to push her embarrassment aside. 

 

“Are you ok?” Richie asks her seriously as he strokes her hair and Waffles jumps off him and comes over to sniff her face.

 

“Yeah,” Kate grumbles as she gives Waffles a good head head pat and lets him stretch out next to her; she still can’t get over how cute he is, “I still can’t believe she went through my laptop _and_ my phone to get those pictures.”

 

 

Maybe it’s because Kate _was_ a virgin before she started dating Richie but this all just feels like such an invasion of privacy to her. Perhaps if you go around sleeping with a different person every night of the week or you’re more experienced with other people, than you can just brush stuff like this off. Kate has seen most of her girlfriends boobs or other bits and bobs over the years, but she’d always been kind of private when it came to herself. Twenty two might have been a long time to wait for some people but Kate had wanted her first time to be with someone special, and boy is she glad she waited. They’d been dating for over six months before they did anything physical with each other; Richie had his own issues to deal with and Kate still wasn't quite ready to lose her virginity. When they did finally do it, it was magical but not because Kate had had some earth shattering orgasm, it had actually hurt like hell at first, but because she could feel the love pouring out of him and into her. _That’s_ what she would have liked on tape; not the perverted clip that Vanessa had captured.   

 

“I’m just glad she didn't find that tape we made when we were in Cancun,” Richie ponders, “That would probably have been more embarrassing.”

 

Kate goes even redder; she’d die if Vanessa had found that, the two minute wonky angled one of them she had filmed was bad enough. The Cancun tape had a bit more production value to it and if Richie was away, Kate would regularly take it out and watch it; they both just looked so _hot_ together. It wasn't even like they had planned on making a sex tape when they were on vacation, mostly they’d just recorded Seth passed out in his deckchair after one two many margaritas or taken it sight seeing they could show Uncle Eddie. However, when they’d gotten back to their hotel room and drank a few too many margarita of their own; things had gotten a little wild.

 

“I think I’d have to leave the country,” Kate mutters as she shudders at the thought of _anyone_ other than Richie seeing that tape.

 

 

“Seriously though Kate, don’t let her embarrass you,” Richie says gently as Waffles lets out a sleepy snore, “ She’s not worth you getting upset about. We had a good time that morning; don’t let her ruin that memory for you.”

 

Richie’s right as usual; they had fun that evening _and_ they’d had fun this morning as well; when Kate had woken Richie up with a special birthday blow job. However, she almost gags at the thought of Vanessa picking her way through the _bin_ to pick up Richie’s well used condom. Seriously; who does that?! Now all she was ever going to think about when she was about to get it on with Richie, was the time Seth’s creepy wife spied on her from underneath her own bed. Kate knows it probably sounds cheesy, and that Seth would laugh his ass of at the pair of them, but making love to Richie was almost like a sacred act to her; something to be treasured no matter if it was a quickie against the kitchen counter or the hours they could spend laying in bed exploring each other. Why Vanessa, of all people, would want to intrude on that is beyond her comprehension, but then, so were a lot of Vanessa actions. 

 

“I know, you’re right,” Kate sighs as she moves closer to him now that Waffles is taking a little puppy nap, “But tell me honestly won’t you?”

 

“Tell you what?” Richie asks, as the colour starts to rise in Kate’s cheeks and she starts to look embarrassed again.

 

“Am I…” she trails off to almost a whisper and he has to strain to hear the last part of her sentence, “Am I really that loud?”

 

Richie bursts out laughing, he laughs so loudly that Waffles wakes up with a start and starts to run in circles around them; Kate glares at him.

 

“Yeah honey, you’re loud!” he giggles as Kate continues to look pissed at him, “But I like that, turns me on to know that you’re enjoying it as much as I am.”

 

Then he grabs her and pulls her on top of him so that her legs rest either side of his waist; causing Waffles to bark incessantly until she picks him up and puts him on Richie’s chest. 

 

“That I can live with,” Kate smiles as she leans down to kiss him, only to be cut off by Waffles who jumps up to lick her face, “Oh honestly Waffles!” 

 

The puppy ignores her and continues licking her until Richie takes hold of him, and sits him back down on his chest. 

 

“I’m pretty sure I’m the only one who gets to lick Mom’s face Waffles,” Richie mock scolds, as Waffles doesn't even bother to look the slightest bit guilty.

 

“I don’t think I want _anyone_ licking my face thanks,” Kate deadpans as she wriggles down so she can rest her head her head on Richie’s stomach; his hand finding its way to her hair as he rubs the back of her scalp.

 

“What if I wanted to lick someplace else? Would that be ok?” Richie asks and Kate can’t help but burst out laughing; _that_ place he can lick at till his hearts content. 

 

His roam about her bottom for bit, sliding down the back of her shorts and cupping the peachy flesh but Kate can’t be bothered to tell him off; she’s pretty sure Waffles will do that for her. 

 

“Why aren't _you_ more bothered about this anyway?” Kate asks him the heat from his skin warms her face and start to make her feel sleepy, “Seth saw you in all you’re glory too!”

 

“Seth has seen me naked more times than is probably healthy,” Richie says off-handily as he rubs the back of her neck, “I’m pretty sure he had to put me in the bath a bunch of times as well, but I don’t really remember that.”

 

Richie had a vague memory of waking up on Uncle Eddie’s lawn, after disappearing for three months, in sub zero temperatures with barely any clothes on; Seth almost throwing him into a tub of warm water. He’d then spent a fun two weeks in hospital with phenomena and trying to convince anybody that would listen that a thousand year old snake queen needed his help. Seth jokingly refers to that period as their “break-up”, just so that Richie won’t feel bad about the fact that his brain had broken so badly, he didn't even want his own brother around him. There were other times when he wasn't looking after himself and his personal hygiene was disgusting; he’s too mortified to tell Kate about any of that. He will, however, recount to her the many, many times he has walked in on Seth doing something with some random woman spread out all over the couch.

 

“Hey,” he asks her excitedly, “Did I ever tell you about the time Seth got kicked out of his old girlfriends house, and had to run home with a thong on?”

 

“ _What?!_ ” Kate exclaims as she sits up to look at him, “Tell me!!”

 

“I don’t remember it all that well, it was when I first stated getting sick, but I think she found out he was also sleeping with her sister,” Richie explains as Kate lets out a noise of disapproval, “Anyway, she shoved him outside completely naked and thew her sisters underwear at him that she found, he had to run all the way home in them; I found him crouched behind the trash can when I thought a tentacle man was trying to break into the house.”

 

Kate erupts into a loud snort of laughter and dramatically rolls off Richie and starts giggling loudly as she clutches her stomach; there is no way she isn't going to take the piss out of Seth about this! Richie apparently has even more stories to tell her, as he carries on over the top of her laughter.

 

“…and then there was the time that he got himself handcuffed to a headboard, I had to climb through a second story window to get him out, _and_ there was the time that I had to wait outside in the car whilst he shimmied down the drainpipe of some girls house….”

 

Richie could probably go on all day with stories about Seth’s dating history but at least his brothers misfortunes have cheered Kate up; he would hate for her to feel embarrassed about what they so in there private time together. Granted, Richie doesn't have very much experience with anyone besides Kate, being committed to an mental hospital doesn't exactly allow for a lot of dating, but it’s unfathomable to him that he could ever be with anyone else; Kate is it for him.    

 

“Tell me again why everyone thinks that Seth is the cool one?” Kate chuckles as she sits up and folds her legs underneath her.

 

Richie just shrugs; he’d always been secretly jealous of how effortlessly Seth seemed to charm everyone but Kate has made him see the value in himself. He might not be allowed to drive the car or still gets a bit jumbled up in the head sometimes but at least he got the girl. Kate is still smiling at him so he leans up and kisses her softly on the lips, ignoring Waffle’s barks of protest.

 

“What was that for?” Kate asks him, her green eyes sparking down at at him.

 

“For being you,” Richie tells her simply, as he leans into kiss her again, “And for getting me Waffles and doing all the party stuff, nobodies ever done _anything_ like for me.”

 

Kate smiles sadly at him; Seth had told her some of the horror stories of Richie’s previous birthdays, like having to go and visit him in a psychiatric ward where he’d been strapped down to a bed and heavily sedated. However the one that had stuck out the most was the when Richie had been thirteen, his first birthday after his dad got put in jail, and Eddie invited all his classmates to some adventure playground thing and not _one_ kid showed up. It had made Kate so sad to think of little Richie, all alone and not really understanding why those kids picked on him or said cruel things to him. Richie had deserved to have something nice for once and Kate had been more determined than ever to give it to him; why couldn't Vanessa have waited just _one_ more day?

 

“I know what you’re thinking,” Richie says suddenly, as Waffles plonks himself down right in front of them.

 

“What am I thinking?” Kate asks, it’s kind of spooky when he does this; Richie seems to be able to see inside her head, even at the bits she tries to hide from herself.

 

“You’re thinking that you’re upset that I didn't have a good birthday, that Vanessa ruined everything and this is just going to be added to the long list of “Poor Richie” stories.” Richie explains, his eyes going over her like an x ray, “How am I doing?”

 

“Dead on as always,” Kate grumbles as she tickles Waffles under the chin to stop him whining at them, “But I’m right though aren't I?”

 

“Nope,” Richie says much to Kate’s surprise, “I mean I wish she hadn't said all that horrible stuff about your mom or thrown Eddie all over me, but knowing that you would do all that, all the banner and balloons and the cake, that’s enough for me. I’d feel pretty selfish if I got any more than that.”  

 

There will come a point, Kate can knows it, when Richie gets it into his head that he’s not this worthless monster that nobody should even consider caring about, and Kate is going to be with every step of the way until he does.

 

“Well, just so you know, I’m going to keep spoiling you until you realise that you are worth every banner, every balloon and every puppy I can buy you,” Kate informs him as she kisses him softly on the forehead, “Is that ok with you?”

 

“Only if you let me spoil you as well,” Richie agrees as he strokes her cheek, “And let me buy you some new panties if you’re so keen on ditching the black ones.”

 

Kate just grins at him; she’s got a bag downstairs with over two hundred dollars worth of sexy lingerie which are gonna make Richie forget all about the now tainted black pair. She’d been buying last minute party stuff at the mall with Seth, when she’d snuck away to get Richie a little extra treat. However Seth, much like Waffles, didn't take to kindly to being ditched and she’d turned around with a handful of tiny lace things in her hand to find him standing there, chatting up the sales lady as Kate almost died of embarrassment. Then, instead of leaving like a normal person, he’d insisted on paying for all her stuff as he explained to her “What kind of brother would I be, if I didn't make sure that little brother isn't going to have fun on his birthday?” She’d felt kind of guilty, and slightly weirded out, when Seth refused to take no for an answer and had even thrown in a bottle of favoured lube as well. 

 

“Seth is never going to let me forget this is he?” Kate shudders, her face in her hands as she tries to gage on a scale of one to ten at just how bad Seth’s teasing is going to be.

 

“Nah he won’t,” Richie promises her, “I think he’s got his hands full with Vanessa.”

 

“Richie, this is Seth we’re talking about,” Kate says exasperatedly, “He still makes fun of you about the time when you were six and threw up on a donkey ride!”

 

“He knows I have a sensitive stomach!” Richie mutters to himself before adding, “Look, I know Seth can be a jerk but he won’t say anything to you about this, I know he won’t!”

 

He’s looking at her imploringly but Kate just shakes her head; Seth might be able to pull the wool over Richie’s eyes but Kate can see right through him. This is the type of stuff that Seth lives for!

 

“Yes he will,” Kate whines, “He still teases me about that stupid vegas trip!”

 

Seth is like an annoying older brother to her and it made her cringe with embarrassment that he has now not only seen her naked, heard her begging for Richie to take her harder whilst on all fours, but also knows that she doesn’t mind doing the nasty when Aunt Flow comes to visit.

 

“This is different, it’s not like he walked in on us by accident or anything,” Richie tries to tell her and Kate does have to admit he has a point, “Seth wouldn't be an asshole to us about us.”

 

He says it so assuredly that Kate almost starts to believe him; if anyone can handle Seth when he’s in full on teasing mode it’s Richie. 

 

“If he gives you any shit, just say “Delilah” at him," Richie tells her as he strokes Waffles' tummy, "That’ll shut him up.” 

 

“Delilah?” Kate frowns, “What does that mean?”

 

“Sorry Humming Bird,” Richie apologises as rolls onto his side and picks Waffles up, “I can’t tell you that one.”

 

Kate shrugs and brushes the secrecy off like she isn't bothered even, though she’s already plotting how many shots of tequila it will take for her to get that story out of Richie. 

 

“What do you say little buddy?” Richie asks Waffles as he sets his new friend down on the floor, “You want to check out your new forever home?”

 

Waffles gives an excited yip and races off out of the bedroom door; closely followed by his new Mom and Dad. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> RICHIE GOT A PUPPY!!! How cute is Waffles?!! If you want to see what Waffles looks like; check out my instagram where I post extra little bits and bobs - my account is kichiefiction.
> 
> Once again, thank you to everyone that read this and enjoyed it; comments are always greatly appreciated!


	5. Chapter 5

It felt like Seth had been sprawled out on the pavement outside Uncle Eddie's for a life time and he watches, almost in slow motion, as Kate darts towards the front door; her small hands reaching forward to slam it shut. Pain shoots through his arm from where he’d collided painfully with the ground but Seth ignores it as he struggles to get to his feet, Kate’s tear stained face already disappearing as the door starts to close. Lying squashed beneath him is Vanessa who is more concerned about the handful of hair Kate had ripped out than the complete chaos she’s caused. By this point Seth isn't even listening to her; his only concern is getting back to Richie.

 

"RICHIE!" Seth calls out as he desperately tries to untangle himself from Vanessa and get to the door in time before Kate shuts it. 

 

Something grabs his ankle, almost dragging back down to the ground, and Seth looks down to see Vanessa clinging onto him and rambling nonsense about how Kate is a "little bitch" and Richie is a "demented freak." He's barely even started to try and pull himself free when there's a loud bang up ahead signalling that he's too late; Kate has already slammed the door shut. Furiously, Seth attempts to remove her grip on him but Vanessa digs her nails into his skin and continues her diatribe against Kate and Richie. 

 

"Get off me," Seth snarls, finally shaking himself free from her needle like fingernails and sprinting towards the house.

 

The front door to Eddie's house is already locked and bolted but that doesn't stop Seth from trying to get Kate to open up the door. A loud sobbing sound is coming from the other side and Seth hates himself more and more for even bringing Vanessa here the first place. Kate had argued with him over it for weeks, her suspicions already raised when Vanessa had _insisted_ that she wanted to come to Richie's birthday party. Somehow Seth had been stupid enough to believe that Vanessa just wanted to try and be part of the family and celebrate with them for once. Deep down he knew that Vanessa had always hated Richie and she’d clearly been out to spoil things from the start. Seth had always forced himself to believe that the problems between his wife and his family were just teething issues or a simple clash of personalities that would eventually sort itself out, but after tonight's performance he couldn't lie to himself any longer. 

 

"RICHIE!" Seth shouts again even though he already knows it's pointless, "KATE PLEASE, OPEN THE DOOR!"

 

Behind him Vanessa is still muttering away to herself, checking her precious fingernails for breakages despite Seth's warnings for her to be quiet. 

 

"… it's those two _freaks_ that are the crazy ones, not me! It was his fault that happened-"

 

"PLEASE KATE," Seth calls again as he tries to drown out Vanessa's bitchy comments before Kate hears them, "PLEASE JUST LET ME CHECK ON RICHIE!"

 

"GO AWAY!" Kate screams suddenly and the door frame rattles loudly as she pounds on it from the other side, "LEAVE US ALONE!"

 

"KATE OPEN THE DOOR!" Seth demands, desperately turning the door handle again even though he knows it wont open.

 

"I SAID LEAVE!" Kate screams back at him,"JUST GO AWAY!" 

 

After that there's only silence but Seth can’t exactly blame Kate for not opening the door for him. Pressing his face up to the darkened window, Seth see's a little blur dash past in the direction of the living room. He could probably get in through the back door but realistically Seth doesn't think that's a good idea; Kate is clearly too upset to want to deal with him and secondly, what the fuck was he supposed to do with Vanessa? It would turn bloody if the two women came into contact again so soon, Seth is certain of that, and he didn't know if he had the strength to deal with the two warring women. There wasn't any part of him that wanted to leave Kate to sort out the cluster fuck that Vanessa had created, but what choice did he have? He knew Kate well enough by now to know that he wasn't getting through that door anytime soon, no matter how good his intentions were, and especially not with Vanessa still hanging around. There's an indignant huff from the floor next to him and Seth stares down at his wife as she inspects one of her chipped nails.

 

"That little bitch," Vanessa mutters as she gets to her feet and brushes the dirt off her jeans, "Look what she did Seth! LOOK!"

 

She holds out her grazed palms towards Seth and looks at him expectantly, clearly waiting for him to agree with her that Kate is indeed, a little bitch. Well, Vanessa will be waiting for pretty long time and Seth turns away without answering as he starts banging on the door once more. He hammers on it for at least ten more minutes before he ultimately concludes that nobody is going to open that door with Vanessa still stood out here.  

 

"She's ruined my outfit _and_ my hair again!" Vanessa snaps as she tries to show him her ruined clothes and hair extensions, "You better make her pay for this Seth!"

 

Her hair, that's what she's fucking worried about, Seth thinks incredulously, and instead of responding he pulls out his keys and marches towards his car. Vanessa is trailing behind him still whining about her fucking clothes and stupid hair extensions and demanding to know what Seth is going to do about it.  

 

"Just get in the fucking car!" Seth snaps, grabbing her by the elbow and dragged her towards his car, "And shut up!"

 

"What are you getting angry at me for?" Vanessa spits as she pulls her arm free and strides over to the car herself, "This was all Kate and Richie's fault!"

 

Seth can't, he really can't with her right now so instead, he shoves Vanessa through the passenger side door and forces her into the seat. She doesn't take too kindly to this and Seth finds his hands being slapped away before he can even get the door shut. In an ideal world he would have just left her stranded on the side walk and driven off but then that would have meant she'd still been in worrying proximity to Richie and Kate. Thank Christ there isn't a gun in the house because he doesn't fancy Vanessa's chances if Kate were to get her hands on one. 

 

"Oh, so I'm getting the blame as usual am I?" Vanessa moans as she pulled her legs into the car, "Mustn't blame poor crazy Richie or perfect princess Kate! Why-"

 

Seth cuts her off by slamming the door shut and silencing her for a little while whilst he stares back at Eddie's house. What the _fuck_ had just happened? How did they go from singing Richie happy birthday to Vanessa and Kate duking it out on the floor like members from a pro wrestling team? And what was with Vanessa thinking he was screwing around with Kate of _all_ people?! Seth had no idea how she'd even come up with that little scenario but it must have been when she was playing at Columbo and hiding under Richie's fucking bed. What the _fuck_ was that about?! If it had happened to anyone else Seth would have thought the whole thing was hilarious but it doesn't seem all that funny right now. In fact, it's downright creepy and imagining Vanessa looming over his brother and Kate whilst they were fast asleep is sending chills down his spine. Even when Richie was at his most weird he'd never done shit like this and he'd ended up in a mental hospital! Now Seth is beginning to wonder just what else Vanessa has been up to. Abruptly the car door flies open and Vanessa sticks her head out, impatience written all over her face. 

 

"I thought you wanted to leave?" she barks leaving Seth wishing more than ever that he was on the other side of the front door, "Don't just stand there staring Seth!" 

 

He didn't want to leave, not when Richie was in such a state, but Vanessa's presence was clearly upsetting everyone and Seth needed to get her ass out of there. Reluctantly, he got in the car and started to drive away; casting one last look at bolted front door. It felt like the storm that had been brewing between himself and Vanessa for all these years had finally come in to land and Seth wasn't looking forward to the devastation it's about to cause. A little bit late for that, a voice in the back of his head whispers, as the sound of Vanessa's hand hitting Richie face's rings in Seth's ears. His hands grip the steering wheel tighter and Seth knows that he can't just brush Vanessa's behaviour aside once more. This was hurting other people now, people he cared about more than anything, and Seth couldn't let it carry on like this.

 

"Look at this," Vanessa mutters as she peers at her bedraggled hair in the wing mirror, "That spiteful little witch, you better make her pay for this to be fixed!"

 

Seth ignores her again and keeps his eyes on the road and tries to get his head around where everything went so very, very wrong this evening. Unfortunately, the ride home isn't long enough for him to figure that out and all too soon they're pulling up outside their horrid suburban nightmare of a house. Vanessa had been ranting all the journey home about her hair, her clothes, Kate, Richie and how none of this was her fault and that Seth better speak to his brother about the way he had acted. For the most part, Seth had successfully managed to tune her out but now that they're home Vanessa's voice just seems ten times more amplified and her words bore into his head like a drill.

 

"… Evil little troll thought she could get one over on me… Seth? SETH WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"

 

Seth had already gotten out of the car, slamming the door shut behind him, and headed on into the house leaving Vanessa to scramble after him. He needed a beer or eight just to even deal with the sheer craziness of this whole situation and he trudged doggedly into the kitchen. Wrenching the fridge door open he pulled out a beer and flicked the cap off, draining half of it whilst Vanessa frantically chattered away in front of him. It was all just noise to Seth at the moment and he couldn't seem to get a handle on whatever rubbish was spewing forth from her mouth. Knocking back the rest of the beer he tosses the empty bottle in the trash and snatches up another one. Richie would have told him that "alcohol is never the answer" or some other of therapy buzzword but Seth would argue that in this particular situation; alcohol is definitely the answer. Vanessa continues rabbiting away to him whilst he drinks, seemingly oblivious that Seth really needs her to shut up so he can think. 

 

"Look, I forgive you ok?" Vanessa tells him abruptly, standing in front of him and blocking Seth's path to the fridge, "I know that you wouldn't willingly have slept with that little beast."

 

He stares at her, the beer bottle raised to his lips and he realises that Vanessa _still_ seems unable to get her head around the fact that Seth is not sleeping with Kate. The whole thing is just fucking ridiculous and Seth almost wishes that he'd stuck around just to he could force Vanessa to apologise to Kate and Richie's faces. It's like she's created a whole little fantasy in her head but Seth still cant even think straight, let alone give her a response. It's _Vanessa_ that should be asking for forgiveness from _him_ , not the other way around and he pushes Vanessa out of the way, grabs another beer and heads into the living room in a last ditch attempt to get away from her. 

 

"Just tell me when it happened" Vanessa demands as she follows Seth into the living room, "Tell me how that stupid bitch seduced you and we can move forward."

 

The pressure of the last few hours bubbles up inside Seth, not like a tangled knot but like a ticking bomb; and he was about ready to explode. He'd tried to keep a lid on it throughout the whole ridiculous shit shows that Vanessa had put on, tried to be the reasonable one so he could just get her the fuck out of the house. The semi calm composure he'd created was starting to crack and, alarmingly, Vanessa seems unable to see that she is the one that caused this whole nightmare in the first place. 

 

"You saw right?" Vanessa babbles away in front of him, her eyes wide and desperate, "You saw what happened; Richie should never have spoken to me like that…"

 

Shut up, Seth thinks desperately as he chugs down more beer, just shut up and let me think. 

 

"Seth? Are you even listening to me?" Vanessa snaps but Seth keeps his focus firmly on the beer bottle clenched firmly in his hand.

 

"If you just tell me how it started," Vanessa demands as she grabs hold of the front of Seth’s shirt, her eyes bulging, "Tell me how she managed to get her filthy little claws into you!"

 

Before Seth even knows what he's doing, the bottle in his hand goes flying and smashes into the wall; bits of broken glass and beer coating the back of the couch. Vanessa's eyes go wide with disbelief and thankfully she shuts up long enough for Seth to gather himself together. Her hands are still tangled in his shirt and Seth ends up pushing Vanessa back a little as his anger take over. 

 

"Let me just process this for a moment," he shouts at her, waving his hands around angrily, "You thought I was having an affair so you _broke into my brother's house_? WHAT THE FUCK VANESSA?! WHO THE FUCK DOES THAT?!"

 

"Wait…. Are you angry at _me_?" Vanessa quires with her head tilted to the side like she can't quite understand where Seth is coming from, " _I'm_ the one who should be angry Seth!"

 

Seth almost does a double take whilst Vanessa continues to look curiously at him, like Seth didn't have the right to be upset about any of this. For some strange and unknown reason, his wife doesn't seem to get the fact that breaking into someone's house and filming them have sex is not an ok thing to do. Everything about her demeanour is telling Seth that she isn't sorry at all and it just makes him ten times more enraged.

 

"OF COURSE I'M FUCKING ANGRY!!" Seth shouts back at her as he feels his face heat up from all the blood rushing to the surface, "BUT I'M ANGRY AT _YOU_ , YOU IDIOT!"

 

Vanessa's hands ball up into fists at being called an idiot and she's almost shaking with rage and she storms towards Seth, getting right up in his face. Makeup is smeared all down her cheeks and there's a big bald patch on the side of her head where Kate had ripped her hair out again. It's her eyes that worry him the most though, not her clown-like exterior, and they flash dangerously when she brings her hands up and shoves Seth hard in the chest.  

 

"NONE OF THIS WAS _MY_ FAULT!" Vanessa screeches like a banshee as she shoves him once more, "YOU _SAW_ WHAT THAT LITTLE TRAMP DID TO ME!"

 

"SHUT UP!" Seth yells, backing away from her to stop her from pushing him again, "JUST _SHUT UP_ FOR FIVE MINUTES!" 

 

All the arguing, all the yelling is just far too similar to what he went through as a kid, especially when Vanessa shoving him like that. Growing up with someone whose only conversational skills were drunken rages or screaming at him and his brother that they were "stupid little shits” had left Seth’s tolerance levels very thin. He'd thought he'd gotten past all that but it still made Seth's chest go tight whenever Vanessa starts to get into one of her screaming fits; usually whenever Seth had dared to mention anything to do with Richie. 

 

"NO, I _WON'T_ SHUT UP!" Vanessa roars, her hand striking out towards him and pulling him back towards her, "NOT UNTIL YOU TELL ME WHEN YOU STARTED FUCKING THAT LITTLE BEAST!"

 

Seth can't remember Vanessa ever being this strong before and every attempt he makes at trying to force her let go turns out to be useless. Her fingernails are digging in like talons and Seth's arm is already starting to hurt from where he fell over before. 

 

"Let go, Vanessa!" Seth demands but Vanessa just tightens her grip and forces him to look at her. 

 

"Was she better than me? Is that it? Did you like that virgins tight little cunt better than mine?" Vanessa rants sounding increasingly more unhinged, "Did you prefer fucking that bony little girls body of hers better than mine? Answer me!"

 

Seth wrenches himself free; completely disgusted by her words. Maybe, maybe he could understand Vanessa's reasoning if she thought Seth was screwing some random girl, but not Kate. Kate is like his little sister for fuck sake! One he likes to tease about her awful knitting skills and laugh when she can't reach stuff off high shelves. Even _if_ in some alternate reality that he _did_ have feelings for Kate, Seth would never, ever act on them; Richie means far too much to him to destroy their relationship over a girl. The whole thing is just bizarre to him and, yes, Kate is a very sweet girl but she is definitely not Seth's type. All though, he's probably going to have to rethink his type because his type is currently staring at him and breathing very hard and fast through her nose like an angry elephant waiting to charge.  

 

"How many times Vanessa?" Seth argues back at her as he steps further out of her grabbing zone, "How many fucking times do I need to tell you that THERE IS NOTHING GOING ON WITH ME AND KATE!"

 

He'd hoped that by yelling the last bit it might sink into her head but Vanessa scoffs at him, a smug smile playing across her face whilst she shakes her head at him. Clearly, this is going to take a lot longer than Seth had anticipated.

 

"Why do you keep denying it?" she asks him in total disbelief as she folds her arms across her chest, "Why do you keep denying it when we both know it's true? We all saw the stuff she had been sending you, even that imbecile Richie!”

 

"Are you deaf or just deliberately not listening to me?" Seth snaps and he has to physically stop himself from shaking some sense into her, " _She was sending those pictures to Richie_!" 

 

"Oh please, that was just a cover up!" Vanessa smirks, seemingly glad that she's caught Seth out, "She _knew_ I was onto her and had to cover her tracks. That's why she made _sure_ I'd be there and catch them having sex! She's a clever little witch I'll give her that!"

 

Ok, Seth thinks to himself as he backs away from Vanessa a little more, this is starting to verge on Richie territory in terms of delusions. How can Vanessa have convinced herself that Kate purposely allowed herself to be filmed having sex just to cover up an imaginary affair?! It was ridiculous and stupid and Seth was beginning to lose his patience with the whole thing. 

 

"She was having sex with Richie because HE'S HER FUCKING BOYFRIEND," Seth shouted as his anger got the better of him and even though he _really_ did not want to be talking about his little brothers sex life, "THEY WERE HAVING SEX BECAUSE THEY'RE FUCKING OBSESSED WITH EACH OTHER NOT BECAUSE OF WHATEVER FUCKED UP REASON YOU'VE MADE UP!"

 

Before Vanessa had gotten her hands on it, Seth had actually found the whole picture situation hilarious once he'd gotten over the shock of seeing Little Miss Innocent Kate as only God had intended her to be seen. Like he said; they really needed to work on their sexting game. Seth had been _dying_ to tease them about it but in the end he'd never outrightly mentioned it to either of them. Sure, he'd teased Richie in the car the next day by asking him if he'd had a good night with a wink but the joke seemed to fly right over his brother's head. After that, he'd just left it alone because Seth might be an asshole, but he's not t _hat much_ of an asshole and Richie and Kate would probably die of embarrassment if they knew Seth had been privy to their little "phone party." Every guy jerks off to his girl's pictures if he has the good fortune to be sent some but Seth doubted that Richie would have found that fact very comforting. On more than one occasion he’d tried to have "Guy Talk" with his brother but it mostly ended up just being Seth graphically describing his sex life to an appalled Richie. To be fair, back then the longest relationship Richie had ever had was with Santanico The Snake Queen, who ended up being a figment of his imagination. However when things had started getting a little more serious between Richie and Kate, Seth had tried once again to get his brother to open up about his sex life.

 

"So have you two done it yet?" Seth had teased as he drove Richie back from one of his therapy sessions, "I'm not asking for all the gory details but just give me something. It doesn't have to be you know… positional or anything."

 

"Drop it, Seth," Richie had muttered, instantly turning grumpy like he always did whenever Seth tried to pry any information out of him about his and Kate's relationship.

 

"Oh come on," Seth badgered as he tried to guilt trip Richie into telling him if he'd at least kissed the poor girl, "I tell _you_ stuff all the time."

 

He liked asking Richie stuff like this when they were in the car because it meant that his brother had no way of escape and was stuck with Seth's questioning until he gave in and answered. As always, Richie was eventually worn down by Seth's continual poking and prodding and Seth waited eagerly to hear all the juicy details.

 

"I'll only tell you if you promise you won't laugh," Richie told him whilst looking determinedly at the floor, "Or be mean to me about it."

 

"I can't promise that I won't laugh," Seth had told him honestly because ninety percent of the stuff Richie came out with was unintentionally hilarious, "But I _can_ promise that I won't be mean about it."

 

It took Richie a further ten minutes to pluck up the courage to say something and Seth had almost given up on him when Richie finally spoke up. 

 

"I don't really know… what to do," Richie had mumbled awkwardly as he went extremely red, "And sometimes with the medication I can't… it's difficult to…" 

 

"Oh!" Seth had said when he got the gist of what Richie was saying, "Well that's nothing to be embarrassed about buddy, that happens to everybody at some point. I can take you to the doctors if you want, see if they can give you something different so you won't have that… uh…problem? As for the other stuff…"

 

Seth had then given Richie a very non-graphic sex education lesson which didn't turn out to be nearly as awkward as he thought it was going to be. Richie wasn't exactly a virgin but five years stuck in a mental hospital hadn't done a lot to change that so Seth had tried to make sure that when he finally did the deed with Kate, Richie was a little bit more prepared. Now, thanks to Vanessa, Seth knows far more than he'd ever wanted to know about his brother's sex life. At least Richie and Kate were having fun with each other, that's the main thing, but Seth didn't think that either of them will be laughing much now. No matter how nosey Seth had been Richie and Kate had always been very private about whatever they got up to between the sheets and the most he'd ever discovered was an errant stocking and a condom packet wedged down the back of Eddie’s couch. Now he knows all about how they like to ride the crimson wave together and Kate's penchant for barely-there-underwear. If it had been _him_ the centre of the "Sex Tape Scandal" Seth could have easily laughed it off, but Richie and Kate weren't like that and the intrusion into their private moments was likely to stick with them for a long time. Having their sex life made a public spectacle was going to hit them both hard, especially knowing that Vanessa had been creeping around their house and rifling through Kate's underwear drawer. It was weird and creepy and down right insane and Seth didn't understand how Vanessa could argue that Kate having sex with Richie, somehow proved that she was also sleeping with Seth. None of it made any sense and if Vanessa had an issue with their marriage, why didn't she come and speak to Seth about it? Why did she have to go climbing through windows and hiding in closets in the middle of the night?! Christ knows what would have happened if Kate or Richie had actually found Vanessa on one of her little stake outs. She could have ended up with her head blown off if they'd thought she was a burglar. All though for someone so clever Richie was remarkably gullible and Kate was more than a little naive so Vanessa could more than likely could have talked her way out it. In fact, they were that clueless that on their lost weekend in Vegas, Seth had had to rescue his brother and his girlfriend from almost ending up in a threesome with some creep. It _still_ made him howl with laughter at the fact that Kate had insisted that the creepy guy who'd sidled up to them in the casino was "just asking for directions." Creepy Guy even had an extremely obvious boner and a pocket full of condoms but Kate was already in "Good Samaritan" mode and was determined to help the guy. Part of Seth had wanted to see how long it would take before Mr and Mrs Clueless realised that Creepy Guy was sizing up which one them was going to be the "middle" of that particular sandwich. It was hilarious but then Seth had visions of Kate and Richie getting mugged or stabbed and had eventually intervened.

 

"Don't be so mean Seth," Kate had scolded whilst Creepy Guy looked down her top when she wasn't watching, "He's just asking for directions!"

 

"Yeah, directions into your bed!" Seth had chided, pulling her away just as Richie started giving the dude his hotel room number in case he got lost or "needed help."

 

"You could join in if you wanted," the guy had whispered as his hand shot out to caress Seth's leg, "Looks like there's plenty to go around."

 

That had been it for Seth and he frog-marched both Kate and Richie away to the other side of the casino, both of them seemingly oblivious to what had just happened, as the creep trailed along behind them. He'd been in the middle of giving Richie a very stern lecture about not talking to strange people on the street when he'd felt something brush up against the small of his back. It was Creepy Guy's boner and Seth had almost punched the guy when he tried again to get Richie to come away with him.

 

"Beat it, weirdo!" Seth had yelled and Creepy Guy had scarpered quickly away and left him with a baffled looking Richie and Kate, "And you two; stop talking to weird sex freaks!"

 

He kept a closer eye on them after that, when he wasn't drunk or banging one of the cocktail waitresses, but as usual, they only had eyes for each other. Not that Vanessa seems to believe that as she's still insistent that Seth has been sleeping with Kate this whole time.

 

"JUST TELL ME WHEN IT STARTED!" Vanessa bellows as her face turned bright red and vein in her temple starts to pulsate.

 

"When _what_ started?" Seth asks her incredulously, "What are you _talking_ about?"

 

"Kate," Vanessa snaps, breathing very hard like she'd just ran a marathon, "I want to know when you started fucking her instead of me!"

 

An exasperated groan escapes him and Seth almost wants to cry at the insanity of it all because it's starting to look like Vanessa _wants_ him to be having an affair. It would probably make her look less like a lunatic that’s for sure but Seth can't very well admit to something that isn't true. Nor does it seem like he's going to be able to convince Vanessa that there is nothing going on with him and his brother's girlfriend. As he stares at Vanessa, her face full of anger and resentment, a horrible thought pops into Seth's head; what if _Richie_ believed Vanessa's little fantasy story? Richie would know that Seth would never do that to him though, wouldn't he? Seth would like to think so but Richie had been slapped, spit on and had their Uncle's ashes tipped all over him and perhaps wasn't in the best frame of mind to decide if his brother was sleeping with his girlfriend or not. No, Seth tells himself determinedly, he and Richie have been through too much together for Richie to be sucked into Vanessa's crazy nightmare. He'd know that neither Kate nor Seth would ever do that to him but Seth just has to make sure. Pulling his phone out, he dials Richie's cell only for it go straight to voicemail. Cursing, he shoves the phone back into his pocket and decides that he's had enough of this rubbish and makes a move to leave; only to find Vanessa blocking the doorway. Evidently, she still can't seem to let the whole ridiculous "affair" crap drop and is determined to find something to explain away her disgusting actions tonight.  

 

"You don't need to lie anymore, it's all out in the open now," Vanessa coaxed in a manner that sounded like Seth was a naughty child that had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, "Kate saw to that with that frankly disrespectful display she put on tonight."

 

"Disrespectful?" Seth said as his brain starts to ache with the sheer ludicrousness of that statement, "How was Kate being disrespectful when _you_ were the one that smashed her whole house to pieces?!"

 

"I saw what she was doing; touching you all the time, making her little jokes at my expense," Vanessa deflects as her eyes dart about frantically, "She thought she could just carry on right under my nose, the desperate little tramp."

 

It sounds like she's trying to convince _her self_ more than Seth at this point and her eye keeps twitching at the mere mention of Kate's name. Looking at her behaviour, Seth is beginning to wonder if this would have happened regardless of whether Richie had had a birthday or not. If it hadn't have been Kate Vanessa had accused him of having an affair with it would have been some other poor woman. Their marriage had been on shaky ground for months now, ever since that ridiculous dinner party had opened Seth's eyes up a little bit more to the more poisonous side of his wife's personality. At the time he just hadn't been ready or had the guts, to hold his hands up and say he wanted out of their marriage, that he didn't like who he was becoming. It was almost like Seth needed to be shown what Vanessa was really like so he couldn't make any more excuses for her rude behaviour and the way she bullied Richie. Well; she'd sure shown him her true colours tonight and they were anything but pretty.

 

"I can't listen to this anymore," Seth mutters as he paces away from her, "I can't listen to all this rubbish you keep insisting that I've done to my own fucking brother!

 

He's almost moved her to one side when Vanessa rushes in front of him, blocking his path once more and pushes him back into the living room. For some unknown reason, Seth lets her do it, maybe partly because he still wants Vanessa to understand that nothing happened with Kate but mainly because he wants to know what _her_ excuse is for all this nonsense.   

 

"You should be thanking me!" Vanessa says indignantly as she pushes Seth even further backward and he almost bangs into the dining room table, "Now Richie knows what she's really like."

 

Seth lets out a derisive snort; as if Vanessa gives a shit about Richie. There's something else going on here, some reason why Vanessa keeps insisting that he’s been up to no good. Surely if Seth had been having an affair she should just kick his ass to the curb? Vanessa isn't one to be made a fool out of but there seems to be some reason why she's so willing to forgive him and an alarm is going off inside his head. 

 

"You want to know what I was _really_ up to with Kate?" Seth goads, trying to see if she’ll take the bait and Vanessa brims with both anger and anticipation, "Do you want to know what we've been getting up to all these months?"

 

Vanessa's head nods up and down like a yo-yo and Seth smirks at her as he pulls his phone and scrolls through the pictures. He does it slowly, taunting her, until he finds the one he's looking for and in Vanessa's screwed up head she probably thinks he's going through his album full of naked Kate pictures. 

 

"This is what we were doing," he snaps as he shoves the phone underneath Vanessa's nose, "Getting Richie a fucking dog!"

 

It's a picture of Waffles, one of the million Kate had taken when she went round to puppy-sit him, decked out in that ridiculous jumper she had knitted him. His tongue is hanging out because she'd caught him mid-bark and one of his ears has flopped over giving him a bit of a defected look. The wonky jumper wasn't doing much to deter that and Seth had laughed his ass off when Kate had produced a ball of wool and pair of knitting needles from her purse and proceeded to knit the worlds worst dog jumper when they were driving back from the dog pound. The car ride home was filled with Kate muttering to herself as she tried to get the hang of the complex knitting pattern and Seth had purposely gone over speed bumps until Kate got so pissed that she told him to "Go fuck himself" in a very ungodly fashion. 

 

"You're just jealous because you don't have a jumper as nice as Waffles," Kate had snarked when she'd finally finished it and tried to fit the oddly shaped outfit over the dogs head, "Don't listen to mean old Uncle Seth, Waffles."

 

"Less of the old," Seth had warned her as they watched Waffles roll around on the floor and try to eat his new outfit, "I think you broke him anyway."

 

Kate had ignored Seth's insults in favour of pulling out her phone and snapping away as she took pictures of Waffles from every possible angle. It was at that point that Seth should have realised that he was dealing with yet another crazy dog person in the family as Kate cooed over the puppy. Privately Seth had thought that Waffles seemed a bit dim, he kept trying to eat his own tail and barked randomly at nothing, but there was no way he was going to voice his concerns to Kate. The way she'd been acting Waffles may as well have been her first born child; a small, albeit furry, baby Gecko. 

 

"Richie's going to be so excited when he see's him!" Kate had beamed as she almost exploded with anticipation, "We have to make sure we get it on video or something!"

 

"Yeah," Seth had snorted whilst Kate had fussed over Waffles, "That video is literally just going to be twenty minutes of Richie bawling his eyes out, you know that right?”

 

"He won't be that bad!" Kate protested as Waffles tried to chew her fingers, " _You_ just want to make fun of him."

 

Yeah, he did, because making fun of Richie was like Seth's full-time occupation; but in a fun, brotherly way, not a mean spirited way like everyone else seemed to. Besides, Richie gave as good as he got. 

 

"Did you not see how upset he got when we watched the news and those baby ducks lost the mom duck in that storm?" Seth reminded her whilst Kate gave him a very withering look, "Trust me, you may as well buy yourself a canoe with the amount of water works that is going to happen." 

 

"He's not going to cry," Kate said stubbornly as she set about putting a clean blanket in Waffles' dog basket, “Anyway, it wasn't just Richie that shed a tear over those ducks now was it?"

 

"All right princess," Seth said, ignoring the dig about the ducks, and held his hand out to her, "Fifty bucks says Richie cries when we hand over the dog. Deal?"

 

"Fine," Kate agrees as she shakes his hand, "But if _I_ win then I want you to acknowledge how good my dog jumper is."

 

Poor Kate; she had been even more invested in making sure Richie had a nice birthday then Seth had. Now she was stuck with the horrific aftermath of trying to remove their dead uncle's ashes off of her boyfriend with a mini vacuum cleaner. Waffles had been locked in the spare bedroom until they were ready to spring what was supposed to be the ultimate surprise on Richie but as it turned out, Vanessa had a different kind of surprise in store for him. One that was mean and cruel and one that Seth should have predicted was coming. Glancing at his watch Seth notes that it's been over two hours since he left Eddie's and no doubt Kate would have already handed Waffles over by now. Seth's heart sinks a little at the realisation that because he's been stuck here arguing with Vanessa, he's not going to get to see Richie's reaction when he finally gets his present. Ever since they got the little fuzzball Seth had been gleefully anticipating the look on his brothers face when they handed Waffles over and he _knew_ he had that bet won. Richie had been desperate for a dog for years but Seth had always resisted in getting him one because he was so scared that Richie would end up being taken away again and he’d be left with a constant four legged reminder that his brother simply couldn't cope. Now the woman that's standing in front of him, proclaiming to love Seth more than anything, has taken that precious moment away from him. Vanessa doesn't look very loving at the moment, in fact, she looks positively fuming. 

 

"Give that to me!" Vanessa snaps as she snatches the phone from Seth and stares at the picture under narrowed eyes and scrutinises it for all its worth. 

 

Not that it should matter, but considering the mood Vanessa is in Seth is very glad that you can plainly see that the little gold disk on the puppies collar reads "Waffles". In an ideal world, Vanessa _should_ see this as yet more proof that Waffles is the dog's name and not some weird sex code that Seth had with Kate. Yeah, it's unfortunate that the poor mutt shares the same name as his _old_ sex code but hopefully he can convince Richie to change that. 

 

"Now do you see?" Seth grumbles, praying that this will be the end of the nightmare that was this evening and he just gets the fuck out of here and back to Eddie's.  

 

"All I see is that little cretin trying to worm her way into your bed!" Vanessa growls as she thrusts the phone back at him, "And that could be anybodies fucking flea-bitten dog!"

 

The tightly coiled band that had been keeping a lid on Seth’s emotions snaps and he finds himself almost swelling up with frustration at Vanessa continued insistence that he's been leading some kind of double life. Its almost laughable that she is unable, or unwilling, to see that _she_ is the reason behind all this upset. That Vanessa has always been the one that spoils the nice things that they try and do as a family. It's not Richie or Kate who's at fault; it's fucking Vanessa and Seth can't keep a lid on his anger any longer. 

 

"YOU RUINED RICHIE'S BIRTHDAY!" he bellows at her, "HAVE YOU ANY _IDEA_ HOW MUCH EFFORT KATE WENT TO TO MAKE THIS SPECIAL FOR HIM?"

 

Vanessa is no wall flower by any means and she matches Seth's anger with a ferocity of her own; all but punching him in the chest as she shoves him again.  

 

"THE ONLY EFFORT YOU PUT IT WAS LETTING THAT LITTLE GIRL FUCK YOU!" she screeches as her face almost turns purple with rage, "AND I DONT GIVE A _FUCK_ ABOUT RICHIE'S FUCKING BIRTHDAY!"

 

"WHY WON'T YOU LISTEN TO ME?" Seth demands even though he can feel that it’s starting to get far too heated between the pair of them, "WHY CANT YOU SEE THAT THIS WHOLE MESS WAS DOWN TO YOU?!"

 

"Don't try and twist this back on me!" Vanessa cries out as she tries to shove him again, only for Seth to bat her hands away, "If Richie wasn't such a crazy loon then maybe that little creep wouldn't have done the dirty on him!"

 

"HEY!" Seth roars at her as he deflects her hand from striking out at him again, "YOU LEAVE HIM THE FUCK ALONE! WASN'T SLAPPING HIM AND FUCKING THROWING UNCLE EDDIE AT HIM ENOUGH?" 

 

He still can't believe that Vanessa actually went as far as to hit Richie and throwing Eddie at him went beyond anything outside the realm of normality. Ignoring Vanessa's continued ranting, Seth takes his phone out and tries Richie's cell again to make sure that his brother was ok and if Kate needed any assistance only for it to go straight to voicemail. Snapping it shut, Seth lets out a howl of frustration whilst Vanessa watches him out of the corner of her eye. He'd always told Richie that if anybody tried to mess with him, Seth would have his back no matter what; only he hadn't this time. Seth had never raised a hand to Richie in his life and their Pa had knocked them both around enough for a lifetime. The sound of knuckles smacking against flesh still keeps Seth up at night sometimes and he'll find himself having to go and sleep in Richie's room. Just knowing that Richie was close by had always made him feel just that little bit extra safe. That was when he and Richie was still living together and before Vanessa had been shipped off to Eddie's like a sack of unopened mail that nobody wanted. Seth should _never_ have let that happen and he'd found himself unable to sleep less and less after that. Richie keeps telling him that he has PTSD, something that Seth has always scoffed at, and had started not-so-subtly sticking numbers for PTSD support groups onto the dashboard of Seth's car. He'd even convinced Burt to try and talk to Seth into going to a therapist but he’d brushed them both off and informed Richie he didn't need anyone messing with his head, thank you very much. The last thing he needed was for Richie to re-start his one man crusade, determined to protect Seth from every threat whether it was real or imagined; he'd done far too much of that already. Truth be told, Seth is petrified that once some shrink starts picking away at him that he's going to unravel just like Richie did. It's a cruel thought, and mostly unwarranted, because Richie had a lot more going on in his head than just what their dad's fists and cruel tongue had done to him. Seth doesn't like to think about that though, he never does, and instead, he focuses on Vanessa and the vein that's threatening to pop out of her forehead.   

 

"You _know_ that wasn't my fault," Vanessa moans at him but her eyes have gone wild and dangerous, "You _know_ Richie pushed me into doing that. He probably had the whole thing planned out so you would take pity on him like you always do and he could have you all to himself!"

 

Seth lets out a groan and puts his face in his hands and rubs his eyes tiredly; it's like going round in fucking circles with Vanessa. Now even _he's_ starting to question what the fuck is even going on. Richie might be a fucking genius but there's no way even he would have thought up some elaborate ruse that involved him getting showered in a dead man's ashes just so he could have some attention. If Richie wanted to hang out with Seth all he had to do was ask; Seth would be there in a heartbeat. All though, that's not quite true now, is it? A nasty little voice inside his head points out and Seth is suddenly racked with guilt about just how many times he's blown Richie off just to save encoring Vanessa's wrath. The hurt in his brother's voice had been like a knife in his chest but then Vanessa had given him that look, that look that said she was about to kick off, and Seth had pushed all that guilt to one side. Richie never yelled at him though, he'd just glowered quietly in the corner until Seth tossed him a bag of sour worms and apologised for being a dick. 

 

"Fuckingstupidlittlebitchthinkdhecantakemyhusbandandthatfreakofabrotheralwayslaughingatmewellishowedhim…"

 

Vanessa is smouldering away in front of him, muttering wildly about her imagined slights and how now both Kate _and_ Richie were conspiring against her. It sounds like she's making up her story as she goes along, switching it to some other wild theory whenever Seth gives her an explanation. 

 

"Wait I'm confused," Seth interrupts as he holds up his hand to shut her up, "Am I having an affair with Kate or did this whole evening go to shit because Richie wants me all to him self, hmmm?" 

 

"Well… I," Vanessa splutters defensively and Seth interrupts her again before she can make something else up.

 

"Come on Ness, it's not a hard question is it?" he says sarcastically as she glares at him, "OR HOW ABOUT IT'S FUCKING NEITHER!"

 

Vanessa seems a little rattled, like she can't keep up with whatever is going on inside her head, and she shifts stubbornly from side to side. In the end, she seemingly decides to go for her favourite argument, the one where Richie, and now Kate apparently, has been trying to wreck their marriage all along and Vanessa has been the only one with the foresight to see his evil plan. 

 

"Those two freaks are trying to pull us apart!" Vanessa wails at him as fake tears start to pour down her cheeks, "I didn't do anything wrong, all I did was try and save us!"

 

"YOU RUINED HIS FUCKING BIRTHDAY!" Seth yells at her again, louder than ever just to try and get that fact into her head, "YOU FUCKING RUINED EVERYTHING!"

 

Vanessa merely folds her arms and shakes her head at him and the look on her face plainly telling him that she _still_ can’t see that she’s the one in the wrong. If he were less of a man, Seth would try and shake some sense into her but instead, he keeps his arms firmly at his sides. Interestingly, the tears have gone as quickly as they came and now Vanessa just looks pissed off again. 

 

"If anyone ruined Richie's birthday it's Kate," Vanessa sulks as she drags her hand across her face to wipe away the nonexistent tears, "You should be yelling at her, not me!"

 

"What?!How is any of this Kate's fault?!" Seth demands, already annoyed at himself that he's gotten caught up in her web of deceit once more, "You're the one that started all of this with your crazy wild theories!"

 

"Oh course it's her fault! _She's_ the one that decided to get her grubby paws all over you," Vanessa rages as spit comes flying out of her mouth, "The whole pretending to care about Richie was just a ploy to throw me off the scent!"

 

"Do you have any idea how _ridiculous_ that sounds?" Seth taunts her almost laughing as Vanessa gets riled up again, "Any idea at all or is nothing I'm saying getting through all the hairspray you put in earlier?"

 

"Oh please, now you're just being nasty," Vanessa grumbles but her hand flies to her matted and ripped hair extensions and she tries to smooth them down, "And in case you're forgetting; Richie is a supposed to be grown up! It's not my fault that you decided to throw him some kids birthday party!"

 

" _It was supposed to be fun_!" Seth informs her because clearly, Vanessa needs reminding of the concept, "Who fucking cares if Kate went a little overboard with a few party plates and some balloons?

 

Because it was for Richie and not her, that's why and Seth doesn't need psychic powers to figure that one out. Vanessa has always been insanely jealous over any crumb of attention or affection that Seth gives to his brother. It's almost like she just can't stand not being the one that has Seth's full attention twenty-four seven, despite Seth telling her on many occasions that that's not how a marriage is supposed to work. 

 

"It was stupid and pathetic and you should be grateful that I ripped all that tatt down!" Vanessa sulks, sounding more like a five-year-old than a supposedly grown woman, "How do you think it made your uncle's house look?"

 

“I don't fucking care how it looked!” Seth asks her even though he already knows that Vanessa doesn't care, “You’ve got no idea at all about what the shit you've pulled tonight is going to do to him, have you?”

 

Seth _hates_ the fact that Richie never gets excited about his birthday and always seems happy to just let it pass by unnoticed unlike Seth, whose birthday always ends up being a week-long event. Your birthday is supposed to be the one day of the year where it's all about you, where you can be spoilt and eat a shit ton of cake or go out and party with your friends and shit faced. Whilst Richie was kind of lacking in the friend department Seth was still determined to make sure he had a good time; even with Kate's "No Alcohol" policy and the pornographic cake she’d made. So what if they went a little overboard on the decorations? Richie had never had _anything_ like that growing up, even when Eddie took them in, and both Seth and Kate had wanted to make it special for him, something that he would remember. Well, after Vanessa's little display of insanity it wasn't likely that he would forget this years birthday in a hurry.

 

 

"He'll get over it," Vanessa says offhandedly, much to Seth's annoyance, "Besides, he didn't deserve all the effort you went to anyway. You give him far too much attention, to begin with!"

 

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Seth snaps sarcastically as he throws his hands up, "Sorry for paying my own brother a little bit of attention on his own fucking birthday!"

 

He doesn't feel much like telling Vanessa about all the shitty birthdays Richie had to put up with as a kid; she'd probably just get a kick out of them. The majority of Richie's previous birthdays are just too depressing to recount, like on his twenty-first when he'd been heavily sedated and strapped to a hospital bed. Or his sixteenth birthday when some of the more popular kids had suddenly decided to befriend him, after years of tormenting him and calling him "Geeky Gecko" and "Richie the Retard" amongst other things. Seth had been waiting on the couch with a battered old copy of The Exorcist only for Richie to rush past him without telling him where he was going or what he was up to. That in itself was very unusual Richie behaviour because he rarely went anywhere without Seth and was much more content to sit at home with his head in a book. Five hours later Seth had received a call from the police informing him that Richie had been arrested for public indecency and vagrancy after they had picked him up wandering along the highway. At first Seth had thought they'd got the wrong person, none of what they were saying even _remotely_ sounded like something his brother would do, but then they'd put Richie on the phone it all became far too real. 

 

"Seth!" Richie had choked out and Seth could barely understand him he was crying so hard, " _Please_ come and get me!"

 

When Seth finally arrived at the police station he'd found Richie waiting for him, wrapped up in a blanket and in floods of tears. It had transpired that his so called new "friends" had lured Richie out into the woods, stripped him to his underwear and scribbled horrible stuff all over him in permanent marker; laughing at him whilst they did so. Then they'd driven off and left him to walk home semi naked in the pitch black and freezing cold.Thankfully the cops just let Richie off with a warning and he'd begged Seth not to tell Uncle Eddie about what the other kids had done, he was too embarrassed to retell the whole story a second time. Begrudgingly, Seth had agreed but only because Richie was so upset and privately decided that he'd get his own brand of justice later on; Gecko justice. Once he'd gotten Richie home Seth tried to salvage the remains of Richie's birthday but it was too late and the damage had already been done. The next day Seth had taken Uncle Eddie's gun out of the safe, unloaded it, and waited for the douchebag that instigated the whole thing to begin his walk to school. 

 

"It was just a joke man," the kid had wailed when Seth had held the gun to his head, "It was just a dare to see if we could get him out to the woods!"

 

"You come near my brother again," Seth had whispered as the kid straight up pissed his pants he was so scared, "Next time it'll be loaded."

 

Ultimately Seth's little stunt had done more harm than good, further fuelling the other kid's assumptions that Richie was "Crazy" and unfortunately the story had gotten so twisted around that people thought that _Richie_ was the one with the gun and had held a bunch of teenagers hostage in the woods. After that, not even Richie bunch of oddball chess club friends wanted to hang out with him for fear he might pull a gun on them. Seth had never told Richie what he'd done and he wasn't all that proud of it but at least it meant that Richie didn't get picked on again. It just meant that instead, when his next birthday rolled around, Richie had spent on the couch watching tv with Uncle Eddie whilst all the other teenagers went out to parties and got trashed. So yes, despite Vanessa insisting that Richie would "get over it" Seth just saw it as another one of Richie's birthdays being completely ruined. The cause of this years shitty birthday was still glaring over at him and Seth feels like even more of a terrible brother; he should have _known_ that this would happen. 

 

 

"He doesn't need any more attention!" Vanessa said, her lip curling, "Why do you _always_ have to spend so much time with him anyway? He's just your brother, not your wife like I am!"

 

"For fuck sake not this again!" Seth groaned as Vanessa seemed determined to rehash the argument that they seemed to have almost every single week, "It's not my fault that you're not as close to your family as I am!"

 

Vanessa made a face like she'd sucked hard on a lemon; like she always did whenever Seth brought her family up. This was dangerous territory that he was wading into and Seth held his breath a little as Vanessa's eyes flashed dangerously but at this point, he's past caring. Jeff and Trudy Styles had always seemed like regular, nice normal people on the few occasions that Seth had actually met them. They hadn't come to the wedding but that's because nobody, not even Seth, knew it was even happening until an hour before it actually went ahead. Getting drunk in Vegas one thing but getting drunk and _married_ in Vegas was a whole other level of stupidity, something that Uncle Eddie had often pointed out to him. They'd also been a no show at the huge "We Got Married" party Vanessa had thrown when they had returned and she ended up confessing that she hadn't bothered inviting them. The way Vanessa told it, she may as well have been raised by the Manson Family.

 

"You don't understand what they're like Seth," Vanessa had muttered on the drive home from the first time Seth had met her parents, "Did you _see_ my moms face when she offered you that cup of tea?"

 

"Oh… uh… yeah," Seth agreed, wondering what on earth she was going on about; Vanessa's mom had been nothing but nice to them all evening, "How… uh… rude of her."

 

"They're always like that; always looking down their noses at me," Vanessa rambled on as her expression turned thunderous, "You _saw_ how they couldn't resist bringing up stupid Nicole, just to spite me!"

 

It was Seth, actually, who had brought up the topic of siblings; although he glossed over the fact that his own was currently residing in a mental institution. Trudy seemed quite keen on having Uncle Eddie and Richie "When he was feeling better" over for dinner, which Seth had half-heartedly agreed to. For months now Uncle Eddie had been insistent that he wanted to meet Vanessa's "kin" and his nostrils flared dangerously whenever Seth fobbed him off with another phoney excuse. All though Vanessa's parents seemed relatively normal, Seth had always thought that there must be something hidden within the family for Vanessa to barely speak to them.That's when they moved onto the subject of Vanessa's three sisters, all of which she hated and was constantly bad mouthing to Seth. Nicole was the Style's youngest daughter and had just graduated from college, although she had been conveniently absent when her older sister had paid a visit. 

 

"Nicole must be about the same age as your brother," Trudy had mentioned, "That will be nice if we ever get to have a family get together; two young ones together."

 

At the mention of a family "get together" Vanessa had snorted and rolled her eyes, ignoring the very pointed look her father had given her. Seth had had to cut her off when she launched gleefully into the real reason why Richie was "unwell"; he didn't want people judging Richie before they had even met him. He'd gotten an earful about that later but Seth was adamant that the topic of Richie should be left to immediate family only. Nicole's name had popped up quite a lot after that and Vanessa grew steadily more irate as the afternoon wore on; her teeth grinding loudly. Seth didn't see what the big deal was but as soon as Jeff had mentioned, briefly, how well Nicole had done with her studies Vanessa had been almost spitting with rage. 

 

"She's your sister though," Seth had told her as he tried not to set her off, "It's nice that they're proud of her." 

 

Seth didn't get it; he'd tell everyone that would listen that Richie got his Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering aged only eighteen _and_ that he'd done it whilst being completely out of his mind. When he'd gotten a little better the hospital had even organised for Richie to do another one in Mathematics; Seth had put that to good use once they got the bar up and running. Now Richie does freelance work for the government and Seth has no idea what that entails and Richie won’t tell him whenever he badgers him about it.

 

"Oh, so now _you're_ all over Nicole as well are you?" Vanessa had spat at him from the passenger seat, "Maybe _you_ should have married her instead!"

 

“I just meant that she's family," Seth had snapped back exasperatedly whilst Vanessa glared at him,  "You're _supposed_ to want them to succeed!"

 

Vanessa had slumped back into her seat, muttering darkly to herself and Seth caught snatches of "Stupid little bitch" and "Ugly little troll." She was always like this when Seth paid even the tiniest bit of attention to any other female; he's actually quite surprised that Kate lasted this long without Vanessa trying to attack her. Seth had found it all very strange; especially when he discovered that Vanessa hadn't spoken to one of her sisters, Beth, for over _two years_. He couldn't imagine not speaking to Richie for two days, let alone two years and the very thought was almost inconceivable. Even when Richie was locked up Seth still managed to speak to him twice a day; once when Richie got up and then again before he went to bed. That had irritated Vanessa as well and she always seemed ready with an excuse as to why Seth couldn't use the phone. She'd cut the cord off once; enraged that Seth wanted to make a twenty-minute phone call to his brother rather than listen to her bitch about Sally's From Work’s shit new hairdo.  

 

"You don't know what those evil bitches are like," Vanessa had snapped at him when Seth had accidentally brought up her sisters again, " _You_ only had to grow up with crazy Richie and not that spiteful little bitch Cassie!"

 

Cassie was Vanessa's oldest sister and she grew increasingly bad tempered whenever Seth brought her up. It was like watching a firework go off as his wife simmered and fizzed with barely suppressed rage, snarling at Seth if he so much as mentioned Cassie's name. After a bit of careful digging, it turned out that Cassie's only crime was laughing at a bad perm that Vanessa had gotten way back in high school. Furious at being made fun of Vanessa had snuck into Cassie's room in the middle of the night and cut all her long, wavy dark hair off. She'd actually laughed when she told Seth about how Cassie had woken the whole house up with her hysterical screaming, handfuls of hair clenched in her hands. It hadn't sounded very funny, especially when Vanessa mentioned that she'd even put hair removing cream on Cassie's eyebrows, but then again, Seth had never had a sister. Maybe the rules were different when it was girls? 

 

"She didn't laugh at me after that," Vanessa had muttered, a smirk playing about her lips, "I made sure of it."

 

At the time Seth had thought it was just sibling rivalry, albeit a terrifying rivalry, but now he feels stupid, stupid for having missed the clear indications of the more poisonous side of Vanessa's personality. More stuff had slipped out after that, like how Vanessa had once locked her middle sister Beth in the attic all night after she had talked to a boy Vanessa liked. Vanessa had made it sound funny like it was just all a big game, but Seth remembered feeling his stomach turn over at the thought of being trapped in a tiny, windowless attic. Yeah; he and Richie would tease each other or get into scraps but he would never intentionally hurt Richie or cause him any harm. When Richie was a baby, Seth had dropped him by accident when he was trying to pick him up out of his playpen and he can still remember wailing to Uncle Eddie; terrified he'd hurt his brother. Vanessa had laughed nastily when he told her that story and suggested that being dropped on his head as a baby was probably what made Richie crazy to begin with. That wasn't what Seth had been driving at but when he'd tentatively tried to encourage Vanessa to make contact with Beth; she'd flipped out again. Seth had left it alone after that, quietly wondering about the Styles Sister situation and how he would never _dream_ of making fun of Richie to the point of his brother not speaking to him for years on end. Whatever dumb thing the brothers were fighting over usually blew over after a couple of hours, leaving them to get back to what they did best; annoying each other. The only time they'd had any serious altercations was years ago, before anyone realised that all wasn't right in Richie's head, and everything Seth said or did seemed to make his brother irritable and bad tempered. Their verbal spars getting increasingly more aggressive, Seth snapping back at him until Richie had blown up like a pressure cooker. 

 

"I can't hear with all of you yelling at me!" Richie had cried as he threw his hands up and tugged at his hair with his hands.

 

"I'm not yelling at you!" Seth had snapped back at him; all he'd done was ask if Richie wanted to go the movies.

 

"I'm not talking to you!" Richie had shouted as he looked frantically around, "I'm talking to her."

 

That's when Richie had first told him about Santanico, Carlos and a whole host of other colourful characters that seemed to be having a party in his head. 

 

"You don't know the half of it, Seth," Richie had told him seriously like they were talking about the plot from a movie, "Culebra's walk among us and you didn't even know anything about it. Santanico is their real Queen but she's stuck in a temple, but she told me that I can help free her, I just have to go through a labyrinth to get her out, that's like a maze by the way, but they can take on other peoples form so you never know if you're talking to one and…"

 

Richie had rambled away like this for a good twenty minutes, his train of thought all over the place and he was getting muddled and confused until Seth made him stop. 

 

"Richie," Seth had asked him, confusion written all over his face, "What the _fuck_ are you talking about?"

 

“Santanico Pandemonium," Richie had grumbled, clearly annoyed that Seth wasn't paying attention to him, "The Mayan snake goddess; she's sitting right next to you."

 

Seth even remembers that he’d actually turned to his left, half expecting that a semi naked Mexican woman in a feathered headdress was going to be sat there. Of course, there was nothing, no woman, no snake people and certainly no tentacle monsters. Richie was adamant that there was someone else there, so adamant that Seth was beginning to get frustrated and suspicious that something else was going on here.

 

"Are you on drugs?" Seth had demanded, grabbing Richie by the chin and looking to see if he had the tell tale red rimmed eyes of a junkie. 

 

“What?!" Richie had asked as he batted Seth's hand away. 

 

"You heard me," Seth said as his eyes raked over Richie's face, "Are you tweaking, PCP, dope, what?"

 

It was then that it suddenly struck him how pale his brother had looked and how the dark shadows under his eyes that seemed to have become a permanent fixture. Richie was in his first year of college, the first year of living away from home and not having Eddie or Seth to rally round after him; maybe it was all a bit much for him? Seth hadn't agreed with Richie living in the college dorms but Uncle Eddie had insisted that it could only be a good thing. In the end, Seth had relented on the condition that Richie came on the weekends which he did for the first few months, then he just gradually stopped showing up and when he did, he was moody and spent all his time locked in his room. Perhaps drugs _were_ the problem?

 

"You know I don't go in for that shit!" Richie had said defensively and Seth could help but believe him; Richie barely even drank, let alone filled his body with narcotics. 

 

"Then what the _hell_ is going on with you?" Seth had asked as Richie tried to explain, again, about the snake queen and the temple and all this other shit that didn't even make any sense.

 

At first, Seth had thought that Richie was messing with him, his brother's sense of humour had always run little weird, and he'd waited patiently for Richie to laugh and say it was all one big joke. The punchline never came though and Seth had gotten angry, shouting that there was no fucking Mexican woman sitting in Uncle Eddie's living room, whilst Richie had screamed at him that there was. Maybe Richie really was out of his box on drugs but the look of distress painfully etched over Richie's face quickly told him otherwise. In the end, he'd told Richie to go to bed and that they'd talk about it the morning whilst Seth tried to pretend that it wasn't all that big of a deal. That was the beginning and the start of a five-year long road where Richie whole being just seemed to slip right through Seth's finger tips; his own brain crushing him into pieces. Even when Richie went completely off the deep end and had gone shit house crazy Seth would never have just _abandoned_ him. Or kicked him out on the street for someone else to deal with like Vanessa was adamant that he should do; Richie was blood and you don't give up on that.

 

"Richie's family," Seth had tried to explain to her one night, "You'd do the same if it was one of your sisters!"

 

"Why should I?" Vanessa had shrugged poured herself a large glass of whiskey, "They can rot for all I care." 

 

Maybe it's because they've never had enough family to fall out with but Seth didn't see why Vanessa wouldn't even consider having at least one of her sisters over for dinner. To be honest his reasons were entirely selfish as he figured that if Vanessa saw how well he got on with her siblings, than she might warm up to the idea of Richie a bit more. In the end, he'd called one of them, when Vanessa had not so subtly hinted that she wanted a surprise birthday party, only to have the phone slammed down before he'd even gotten two words out. When he'd brought this up later on Vanessa had bristled like an angry cat, calling her eldest sister a "demented little witch" and scolded Seth for even calling her in the first place. All though judging by her reaction this evening, Seth is beginning to think that perhaps it's more a case of Vanessa's family not wanting to spend time with _her_ , rather than the other way around. 

 

"This isn't about my family!" Vanessa roared at him, "This is about you cheating on me and always taking Richie's side!"

 

"For the last fucking time," Seth shouted as he threw his hands up in frustration, "I'm not cheating on you!"

 

"Look, it doesn't matter either way; the important thing is that we can't carry on like this," Vanessa said, ignoring Seth's outburst completely and actually starting to sound rationale for the first time all evening.

 

"You're right," Seth said heavily, as the pressure inside him seemed to lessen somewhat; this really was the end for them; "You're absolutely right. We can't keep going round and round in circles like this. I think we can both at least agree on that.”

 

Relief, pure unadulterated relief poured through Seth as he realised that this was it; he was finally rid of his crumbling marriage for good. No more living under the controlling thumb of Vanessa. No more letting her convince him that he didn't have anybody else, that he wasn't wanted. Seth had never been alone, not really, because Richie, Eddie and Kate had all been right there and waiting for him to wake up and smell the coffee. He’d missed out on _so much_ time with them all, especially Uncle Eddie, all the fishing trips, camping weekends and movie nights that he'd bailed out on because Vanessa was so insistent that he should be spending time with her. Or all the times that Richie had needed help or brotherly advice in navigating his burgeoning relationship with Kate; like when they'd first talked about sleeping together and Richie hadn't known what the hell he was doing. Seth had wanted to be the one that helped Richie with all that stuff like any good big brother should do, and not have him go off to Eddie instead. Vanessa had stolen all that from him, all those happy memories that he’d lost out on and due to his shitty childhood, it wasn't like he had many to begin with. That was all over now though, Seth thinks to himself as he takes a deep calming breath, and they can both go on with their lives and find someone who really loves them. He can grab a couple of things and move back in with richie for a bit, maybe go on a long vacation or something and do all the things that Vanessa refused to let him do. Surprisingly, Vanessa doesn't look too upset to be told that Seth is ending their marriage, in fact she looks positively ecstatic. 

 

 

“I _knew_ you’d agree with me! We just need a change thats all," Vanessa says suddenly, beaming at him as she strides over to the cabinet she keeps all her fancy plates, pulling out what looked like a folder full of glossy magazines, "Look! I've already picked out a few places that I think will be suitable."

 

"What?" Seth asked her completely bewildered as she thrust a bunch of estate agents brochures at him, "What… what exactly do you think is happening here, Vanessa?"

 

"Well we can't stay here can we?" Vanessa tells him, laughing slightly like Seth should have already known that, "Not with that girl hanging around and trying to dig her claws into you. We can have a fresh start; just the two of us in a nice new house!”

 

Seth doesn't have the energy to point out, yet again, that he is not having an affair with Kate and instead tries to unpack the rest of Vanessa's sentence. Why the _fuck_ would she think they should just move? All their problems would just follow them anyway and they had enough of them before Vanessa unleashed all the crazy shit that she had done tonight. They just don't fit and deep down Seth has known that for a long time; he just hadn't wanted to admit it to himself. He'd almost left Vanessa once before but then Richie had started getting serious with Kate and Seth had felt, not abandoned exactly, but with a feeling that he would be pushed out. Stupidly, he'd thought that Kate would be like Vanessa and start cutting Seth's already limited time with his brother and by the time he'd figured out that wasn't to be the case, it was too late. Richie and Kate's relationship had ironically made it even easier for Vanessa to keep Seth all to herself. 

 

"They won't want you around," she'd tell him whenever Seth made plans to go over and spend time with Richie and Kate, "They'll be doing some weird nerdy shit like they always do and you hate that kind of stuff, _don't you_?"

 

"Well, I suppose so," Seth had mumbled even though Richie was the only person that didn't make him feel like he was the "Dumb One", "But Richie said that they were just going to watch the Hobbit so…"

 

It had fallen on deaf ears and Vanessa had instead dragged him out on some hideous couples night with one of her friends; already practising her hideous fake laugh. Richie had called him continuously throughout the night and left voicemail after voicemail to ask why Seth wasn't here, if he was ok, did his car break down? Did he need medical aid? In the end, Seth had snuck out to the bathroom and called Richie from one of the stalls, explaining that he was out with friends and tried to ignore how upset his brother sounded. Then there came the long stretches where Seth wouldn't even _speak_ to Richie for fear of upsetting his wife, fully aware of the damage he was doing to his brother and his Uncle. And now Vanessa expects him to go play happy families with her? She's frantically tearing through the estate agents listing and excitedly showing them off to Seth who, in a vain attempt to shut her up, glances through a couple of them whilst she talks. 

 

“This one is perfect look…Modern three-storey town house with living room, kitchen, WC on the ground floor, three bedrooms and two bathrooms on the first floor," Vanessa reads out loud excitedly as she forces Seth to look at all the heavily photoshopped pictures, "Two bedrooms and a bathroom on the top floor. Available September; isn't it great?! Oh, where is it… Oh! Look at this one…"

 

Seth stares blankly at the listing Vanessa is now shoving under his nose, although he does notice that this one along with the other one is nowhere near the state of Kansas. 

 

"…set over three floors and presented in excellent order throughout.The house comprises of an Entrance hall with cloakroom and staircase to the first floor, study, living room, kitchen with breakfast area, utility room, and conservatory with double doors to rear garden," Vanessa parrots as she excitedly reels off the features of the house that Seth has no intention of moving into, "On the first floor the spacious master bedroom with en suite and range of built in wardrobes. There are three other first floor bedrooms with en suite to one, and a family bathroom. On the third floor are two other bedrooms, and a shower room…"

 

On and on Vanessa goes until she finally gets to the last one and looks at Seth expectancy, like he's supposed to chime in and give his opinion on which imaginary house they're going to fly off to. Morbid curiosity gets the better of him and Seth can't help but notice that there was one similarity between all of the places Vanessa has picked out. 

 

"Why are there so many bedrooms in these places?" Seth queried as he flicked through yet another brochure for a four bedroom house that they sure as shit couldn't afford. 

 

"For when we have children silly!" Vanessa chided him as she pulled the brochures from his hands and put them neatly away in her folder, "Where did you think that they were going to go?!"

 

Seth stares at her, his mouth almost falling open in disbelief whilst Vanessa beams back at him, the muscle above her left eye twitching. Somehow he feels like he's entered the twilight zone because he's _pretty sure_ they've already discussed the topic of children. 

 

"But I don't want kids Vanessa and neither do you!" Seth reminded her angrily as he threw the housing information to one side, "We _talked_ about this!"

 

Vanessa had been very vocal about her intention to remain childless; she didn't want stretch marks, a busted vagina or have to put up with being fat for nine months. The actual raising a child part she had been even less keen on, not that Seth was all that bothered. Kids had never been part of his life plan and he was quite happy to leave the task of carrying on the Gecko family name to Richie and Kate; evidently, they were getting plenty of practice in. He's already decided that he's going to be "Cool Uncle Seth" or "Amazingly Cool Uncle Seth" to the hoard of genius ninja babies that Richie and Kate are bound to have once Richie stopped being a self-conscious idiot and asked Kate to marry him. A sudden horrible thought fills him; what if Vanessa is already fucking pregnant?! No, they haven't had sex in months, he reminds himself, and unless Vanessa has morphed into the Virgin Mary, unlikely, then Seth is pretty sure he's safe. 

 

"People can change their minds about stuff Seth," Vanessa snaps as she glares at him, "It's what married people do. We can start our _own_ family and not be burdened by that ridiculous brother of yours."

 

Oh great; now their lack of imaginary children and the fact that they didn't live in one of the fantasy houses that Vanessa had picked out was somehow Richie's fault as well. If Seth wanted kids with Vanessa or anybody else for that matter he would have had them by now and if he wanted to move to another state, he sure as hell would have done that too. Even _if_ Vanessa hadn't turned out to be completely unhinged Seth still wouldn't have just upped and moved sticks. Living an hour away from Richie was already bad enough so expecting him to move two states away just wasn't going to be an option. Not that any of that matters because Seth doesn't even want to stay in this marriage with Vanessa, let alone a brand new house with her. Vanessa, meanwhile, clearly doesn't see it that way and is already babbling away about colour schemes and moving dates and a whole host of other imaginary shit that ain't gonna happen. 

 

"Ok," Seth says, playing into Vanessa's little game for a moment just to see how far she was willing to go with all this, "Say we move. Say we move out to a big fancy house and have a bunch of snotty kids. How the _fuck_ do you think we're going to pay for all of this?"

 

Vanessa switches her emotional state so fast that it almost makes Seth's head spin around because now she's all smiles again; digging through that fucking folder as she pulls out yet more paper. 

 

"I've already spoken to the relator about this place," Vanessa says frantically as she thrusts the floor plan of their house at Seth, "We can get a good deal for it if we sell now and once we've sold the bar-"

 

"What?" Seth says as his head snaps up from looking at a perfect picture of his very own living room; minus the smashed beer bottle and beer stain on the wall, " _What did you say_?"

 

"It's fine Seth, I've already found a buyer for El Ray's so you won't have to a do a thing," Vanessa tell him breezily not recognising the look of anger that is spreading across Seth's face, "Once the sale is complete we'll have enough money to do whatever we want!"

 

Then she's back to talking about floor tiles and wallpaper patterns whilst Seth just looks at her, completely dumbfounded. She's _sold_ his bar?! The bar that he and Richie built up from nothing without a handout or some rich businessman helping them?! The bar that they had slaved over day and night just to prove that they weren't the worthless pieces of shit that their dad had always made them out to be? Seth had always wanted to own a bar but never had the funds or the business know how to do it so he had gone to the smartest person he knew to figure out how to get one; Richie. His brother may have been locked up in a mental institution but that didn't mean that he couldn't put that big old brain of his to good use. Richie had mapped out a business plan for him, complete with flash cards so Seth didn't forget any of the big words, and within a month Seth had their bar. He'd also had to get Richie to teach him how to card count so he could win the money he needed in a poker tournament but that was beside the point. If Vanessa thinks that she's just going to take all that away from them than she's got another thing coming.  

 

"You're not selling my bar Vanessa," Seth tells her coldly, "Not now and not ever. You can't do anything without a lawyer anyway."

 

Vanessa shifts a little, clearly irritated by his line of questioning and that he's not more ecstatic about her grand scheme. The way she's looking at him you would think that Seth's opinion was merely an inconvenience to her and the fact that she was tearing his whole life apart was inconsequential. 

 

"I've already spoken to a lawyer," she grumbles, snatching the floor plans back off him and smoothing them out neatly, "Honestly, I'm not an idiot Seth!"

 

 

"You did _what_?" Seth hisses as he takes an angry step towards her, "You went to a _fucking_ lawyer about my _fucking_ business?"

 

"It's my bar too," Vanessa tells him indignantly, as if she had put the same amount of blood sweat and tears as he and Richie had over the years, “We’re married aren't we?! What’s yours is mine or whatever that vow was."

 

"We didn't take vows! We got married in fucking Vegas by an Elvis impersonator!" Seth rages at her whilst he remains rooted to the spot. It feels like she's betrayed him, sneaking behind his back and selling his business out from underneath him to try and force him into staying with her. Why can't Vanessa just admit that it's over between them?!

 

"Look," Vanessa says softly as she lays her hand on his arm and smiles up at him, "Once the sales have gone through on El Ray's and Eddie's we'll be free and that way we can start afresh."

 

 

"Eddies?" Seth asks, pulling her hand away from his and stepping away from her, "What the fuck have you done with Eddies Vanessa?"

 

 

"I put it on the market weeks ago; the realtor told me it had only been on for an hour before he had loads of interest," she tells him excitedly, oblivious to Seth's look of complete and utter horror, "There are two people bidding for it at the moment, he said he'll get us the best price! Isn't that great?!"

 

Seth can only remain motionless as his brain is still trying to compute just _exactly_ what she's telling him. His bar is gone, his house is gone, Eddie's fucking house is gone and what is he left with? A bat shit crazy wife who can't seem to understand that Seth doesn't want this, he doesn't want any of this. His mouth starts to open but no words seem to be coming out as he struggles to convey just how _fucked up_ he finds this all. A light in his head suddenly clicks on when he realises that Vanessa forgot to mention what's going to happen to the two people that actually _live_ in Uncle Eddie's house.

 

 

"And Richie?" Seth finally manages to choke out as he finds his voice, "What's going to happen to _him_ once you've sold off Eddie house?”

 

He’d expected to roll her eyes and mutter that she doesn't give a shit about Richie or Kate and that they can live in a box under a bridge for all she cares. Instead, Vanessa is smiling once more, perhaps even more so than before, and with all the smudged red lipstick her face as taken on a weird creepy clown persona. 

 

 

"I've already thought about that," Vanessa informs him as she roots around in her folder once more and Seth watches her warily, "I can't _believe_ I didn't think of it before!"

 

She pulls out another glossy brochure and hands it over to him excitedly and Seth takes it from her, frowning slightly in trepidation as he wonders _what on earth_ this has to do with Richie. On the front cover are two ecstatically smiling people standing in front of what looks like a massive manor house with ivy climbing all the way up the front. Worryingly, when Seth takes a closer look he notices that there are bars on most of the windows and a huge wall encircles all the way around the house and beyond that, a dense forest looms large in the background. 

 

"Oakhampton Restrictive Living Quarters," Seth reads out loud off the front cover, "A state of the art secure living facility for the mentally disaffected."

 

A chill runs down Seth's spine as he pulls open the first page and continues to read on, his heart starting to hammer away in his chest when it clicks inside his head what those bars must be for. He can barely make it through the first few lines before the room starts to spin and he has to clutch the back of the couch to keep himself upright. Vanessa can't think that Seth would just agree to this… Could she?

 

**_"Enjoy the piece of mind that your loved one will be properly accounted for with round the clock care by specialised nurses and experts in the field of psychiatric care. Doctors will provide monthly updates; eliminating the need for costly visits that are often deemed ineffective for both relatives and patients. Oakhampton prides itself on its ability to keep its patients in a happy and healthy state by using state of the art medical techniques."_ **

 

"Isn't it great?!" Vanessa chirps excitedly as Seth feels all the blood drain straight out of his body, his face going as white as chalk, "This is _exactly_ the type of place that Richie should have gone to in the first place!"

 

She's making it sound like she’s sending Richie away to a holiday camp or a spa day retreat and not an indefinite stay with Nurse Ratched. Where the _hell_ did Vanessa even find this place? Tearing through the rest of the pamphlet Seth reads on frantically to try and discern what this Oakhampton place had in store for his brother. 

 

**_"Secluded inside Mattatuck Forest; we offer our patients a chance to escape from the trials of everyday life and live in peaceful solitude. The tranquil surroundings enable our charges to be removed completely from the outside world; a world that many have found that they sadly do not fit into."_ **

 

"This is an asylum," Seth says darkly as he almost foams at the mouth with with anger, "And it's in _fucking_ Connecticut!"

 

There's a rage burning inside him, a rage that's burning so strongly that it threatens to consume him and everything around him. How could Vanessa even _suggest_ sending Richie off to live in some nuthouse?! Just palming him off like he was some sort of inconvenience when Richie didn't even _need_ any more fucking help?! How _dare_ Vanessa think that she can just lock him up and throw away the key? Richie is fine, he’s fine now and Seth wasn't about to let Vanessa try and convince him that his brother needs to be hidden away in some god forsaken looney bin!

 

"No, it's not an asylum Seth," Vanessa says defensively as Seth struggles to remember how to breathe, "He'll have his own room _and_ a nurse. He'll like it up there; there are lots of trees."

 

Seth is only half listing to her though because some choice phrases have popped out at him from the Oakhampton brochure and it's making his chest ache. 

 

**_"…patients are restrained for their own safety or held in solitary confinement until detrimental behaviours are brought under control. The use of chemical restraints will also be used if such behaviours persist. Patients will be granted one hour a day of exercise in a designated outdoor space and…"_  **

 

"How the _fuck_ is he going to see the trees when it says here that they only get let out of their rooms for one hour a day?!" Seth spits at her, the papers clenched in his fist as the rage flows through him once more, "WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DO THIS VANESSA?!"

 

"It'll be fine Seth, Richie will get used to it," Vanessa huffs at him, blowing away his concerns like they don't mean anything to her, "That way he won't get himself all mixed up in the head like he usually does and we can focus on us for once."

 

" _Mixed up_?" Seth repeats, his face twisted in anger as he throws the leaflet to the ground, "Richie only ever got _mixed up_ when you started this whole vendetta you've got against him."

 

"Look," Vanessa placates him, laying her hands on his arm and digging her nails in, "Just read the rest of it then you'll understand!"

 

She picks the brochure up from the floor and starts pulling through the pages until she finds what she's looking for and shoves it back under his nose; jabbing her finger at the pages. 

 

**_"All patients' rights are terminated upon entry and commitment lasts up until the death of the patient; upon which the patient's body will be turned over for use in medical science. All patients are expected to partake in medical trials which are mandatory and non-negotiable. Oakhampton takes no responsibility for the outcomes of these trials or any possible side effects that may occur."_ **

 

Medical trials? Rights terminated? Seth's head starts to spin again because he had _promised_ , he had _promised_ Richie that nobody was going to lock him up again and if he became unwell again than they would talk it through as a family. It wouldn't be like last time…

 

 

"I rang and they've got a place for them _and_ I paid for the first year in advance so it would be easier for you," Vanessa rushes on excitedly and practically bouncing with anticipation, "They even provide specialised transport so you won't even have to take him; isn't that great?!"

 

Seth goes very white and very cold and a long buried memory of a hoard of police officers and doctors barging into Uncles House in the middle of the night rears it’s ugly head. That same feeling of powerlessness he had that night comes rushing back and Seth's chest goes tight at the thought of the same thing happening again.

 

"I DON'T WANT TO GO WITH THEM!" Richie had screamed in terror as he was dragged out of bed and pushed into the back of an ambulance, "SETH, SETH PLEASE, DON'T MAKE ME GO WITH THEM!"

 

Seth had been laid out flat on the ground with his hands cuffed behind his back by a police officer and unable to do anything as the ambulance had driven off. He can still remember that no matter how many police officers he punched or how loud he shouted at them to let Richie go; it hadn't made a damn bit of difference because Richie was already gone and there wasn't a fucking thing either he or Eddie could do about it. After that, it took Seth and Uncle Eddie _over a month_ to find out where they'd even put Richie because, apparently, when you get sectioned by the police nobody gives a shit about you or your rights. Nobody would tell them anything, even when Seth had gone down to the police station and refused to leave until one of those bastards told him something. One of them, a dude called Freddie who had actually found Richie on one of the many times he'd wandered off in the middle of the night, had taken pity on Seth and quietly slipped him the information. According to the police report, Richie had been shoved in some awful, dingy, over crowded state psychiatric hospital at the opposite end of the state. Seth had barged straight in and demanded to know where his brother was only for the staff nurse to point over at the thin, sickly looking young man propped up in a chair that he’d walked straight past on his way in. 

 

"Richie?" Seth had whispered in disbelief as he knelt down in front of his brother and gently took one of his ice cold hands in his.

 

They'd shaved all his lovely thick, dark hair off and Richie's collar bones jutted out painfully from his paper thin hospital attire; his skin mottled and gray looking. Needle marks and bruises covered his arms, two small burn marks were on either side of his head and all of Richie's limbs seemed constricted and tight; like he couldn't move them properly. His glasses were nowhere to be seen either which was something that had enraged Seth at the time because _how the fuck_ was Richie supposed to see anything? 

 

"Hey buddy," Seth had said gently as he stroked Richie's hands, "It's Seth and Eddie's here as well; we're going to get you out of here ok?"

 

Richie hadn't said anything, not even when Uncle Eddie had tried talking to him, and looked as if he was struggling to remain up right let alone speak. Glancing around at the other residents Seth noted that they were all like that, locked in some kind of chemical straight jacket so they wouldn't be a bother to the staff. 

 

"Time," a bored looking nurse had called abruptly even though Seth and Eddie had barely been there five minutes. 

 

"I'm going to get you out," Seth had promised as he stroked Richie's face before one of the orderlies started to pull him away, "I'm going to get you someplace safe ok? Just hang tight buddy." 

 

After that first visit, it took them three months and a court order from a judge before Seth and Eddie were allowed to move Richie to a better facility. Seth had already started drinking heavily by that point and ignored Uncle Eddie's increasing demands that he stop and pull himself together. He just couldn't help himself; it was like some horrible form of torture knowing that Richie was stuck in that place with people that couldn't give two shits about him. The new hospital they'd found for Richie had an excellent record of care and rehabilitation but Seth was growing increasingly frantic that his brother wasn't even going to make it there. When they’d finally been allowed to remove him, Richie had been so ill from the lack of proper care that Seth had had to arrange for an ambulance to collect him. It was traumatic and awful and distressing and there is no way on _fucking earth_ that Seth will let Richie go through something like that again. Even after all these years, it's still too raw, too painful to even think about how much they had gone through to help try and get Richie better again. Seth knows that he had been selfish and so stupid to let it get so far that he had no say in what had happened to Richie and he'd not about to let Vanessa put him through that again. 

 

"Richie doesn't need help," Seth says defiantly and he can barely control himself at this point, "He did his time and he recovered."

 

Vanessa blows him off; dismissing Seth's insistence that there is nothing wrong with Richie with a wave of her hand. The mental state, or lack there of, of his brother has always been a great source of annoyance to Vanessa and she would constantly question if Richie was fit to be left in a civilised society; like he was an axe murder or the leader of some weird cult. Any slightly strange or odd thing Richie would say or do then Vanessa would pick up on it and try and force Seth to do something about it; despite Seth telling her on numerous occasions that that was just the way Richie was. Even before he got ill Richie had always marched to the beat of his own drum as Eddie liked to say and he just liked weird stuff, there was no harm in it like Vanessa kept trying to insinuate. It's not like Vanessa even knows anything about any of Richie's diagnosis anyway, or so Seth would like to think. 

 

 

"I explained everything to the admissions department and _she_ told me that from what I said, Richie shouldn't have been let out of the hospital in the first place," Vanessa informs him smugly and Seth starts to feel the rage bubble up further and further to the surface, "Trust me, Seth, this is the best option for everyone."

 

"What the fuck did you tell them, Vanessa?!" Seth demands but he can't keep the worry out of his voice; he knows all too well how easy it is to get someone committed to a mental institution and how fucking hard it is to get them out. 

 

"The truth; something that seems to be a foreign concept to you!" Vanessa tells him loftily and with a hint of indignation that Seth would even question her actions, "I told them _all_ about Richie's crazy antics over the years which, as usual, you've turned a blind eye to!"

 

"THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH HIM!!" Seth explodes but Vanessa simply folds her arms and looks at him like he's being ridiculous.

 

"And they have a better treatment program there. The Doctor I spoke to said that Richie would benefit far more from electric shock therapy, not that painting rubbish he's always doing," Vanessa tells him and Seth feels his rage subside into sheer bloody panic, "If that doesn't work then she said that there's a procedure that they can do where they cut away the parts of the brain that don't work properly."

 

Seth is starting to feel sick and dizzy all at once, his head spinning with visions of Richie being dragged off and his head cut open whilst Vanessa laughs at him. Bile hits the back of his throat and Seth struggles to refrain from spewing his guts out all over the carpet. Vanessa meanwhile is taking everything in her stride, like having people carted off to mental institutions is an everyday occurrence for her.  

 

"It'll be nice for him," she says brightly, smiling at Seth as she leafs through the admissions documents that Oakhampton had sent her, "Look; it says here that it renders patients in a complete state of calmness. Isn't that what you wanted?" 

 

**_"Many patients have benefited from Oakhampton's specialised brain surgery technique that allows your loved one to live out their lives in a peaceful and happy state. Drugs that are effective enough to calm down out-of-control patients or keep a violently insane person from hurting themselves or others are highly expensive; surgical options provide the best solutions for both parties."_ **

 

She's looking at him expectantly; like Seth is just going to up and agree to have bits of Richie's fucking brain cut out so he won't be a bother to her anymore. Well, it's not fucking happening, not if Seth has anything to do with it! Another wave of sickness hits him and Seth can't quite believe how calmly Vanessa is behaving; casually talking about having Richie lobotomized like it's no big deal. He'd seen firsthand what those medieval practices could do to people and there's not a chance in _hell_ that he'd let anything like that anywhere near his brother. A patient at Richie's old hospital had had a botched lobotomy in the early sixties, Gladys her name was, and all she could do was sit and point; her tongue hanging limply from her mouth. Panic floods his entire system and Seth tears his phone out of his pocket and dials Richie's number again; terrified that some creepy doctor will already be there with an ice pick in hand, ready to chip away at his brain. Realistically he knows that nobody can just come along and _take_ Richie but that doesn't stop him from freaking out. After Seth had screwed up the first time he'd consulted a lawyer and got power of attorney over his brother; meaning that nothing can be done to him without Seth's say so.

 

"Richie, I know you're upset," he yells frantically into his headset as it once again goes to voicemail, "But would you please, please call me back?!"

 

Meanwhile, Vanessa is huffing and puffing away in front of him and is obviously getting increasingly more annoyed that Seth isn't jumping up and down with excitement at what she had planned for them all.

 

"It's fine Seth, really," she insisted whilst Seth tried Eddie before remembering that his Uncle was dead and currently all over the carpet before he moved on to try Kate's cell and then the house phone that nobody ever used, "They're going to collect him tomorrow and have the procedure done by Friday; he won't even feel a thing!"  

 

"WHAT?" Seth cries, his head snapping up from his phone as he was midway through trying Zolo, Burt and even the guy that owns the little dog that Richie is nuts about, " _NO, NO YOU CANT DO THAT_!

 

The phone slides out of his hands; his fingers going slack as what she's telling hits him like a ton of bricks. They _can't_ though, he thinks desperately, they _can't_ just come in and haul Richie away to some dungeon never to be seen again. 

 

"It doesn't even take very long and it's not dangerous," Vanessa explains gently like she's sending Richie off for an overdue haircut, "Richie will be fine and you won't have to be bothered with him anymore!"

 

"HE'S NOT GOING!" Seth screams at her, "DO YOU HEAR ME?! HE'S NOT GOING AND THAT'S IT!"

 

"Yes he is Seth," Vanessa counters as Seth, panic stricken, snatches up his phone and tries anyone and everyone he can think of to go and help Richie before it's too late, "I paid a lot of money so that Richie could actually be sorted out for once!"

 

"How did you even get his medical records?" Seth fretted as he tried to remember what the fuck the old guy that lived across the road from Eddie's number was.

 

"I rang the doctor and asked for them," Vanessa huffs like it's the most obvious thing in the world, "The doctors at Oakhampton were very keen on looking at them, said that Richie clearly had had sub par treatment, so all that money you spent on him was clearly a waste!"

 

It's true; Seth had spent thousands of dollars over the years making sure that Richie had the best care, the best doctors and he'd do all again if he had to because money was no object when it comes to his brother. If the shoe had been on the other foot Richie would have done the exact same thing, although he probably would have done a better job at it than Seth. That still doesn't explain why on earth Richie's doctor just handed over his sealed medical files to Vanessa. Only family can do that! Or Kate, he remembers, he'd put her name on the doctor's list when it became clear that she and Richie were in it for the long haul.

 

"Did you… did you pretend to be _Kate_?" Seth asks Vanessa, the penny dropping finally, "Did you ring his fucking doctor and pretend to be his girlfriend?!”

 

Vanessa bristles at the mere mention of Kate's name and her eyes narrow right down to slits and a look of pure loathing crosses her face. It must have killed her, Seth thinks to himself as he watches her, to have to pretend to be happy and upbeat for more than two minutes of her day. He'd always liked that Vanessa had a bit of an edge to her, like she didn't give a shit about your opinion and owned it, but that edge has vastly become the entirety of her personality and she used it like a dagger straight to his heart. 

 

"It was only for one phone call Seth," Vanessa bites out still looking horrified at the very _thought_ of having anything to do with Kate, "Don't act like I took over her identity or something."

 

"You had _no right_ to do that!" Seth burst out and he can already feel tears start to prick the corner of his eyes, " _No right at all_ ; that's his private medical stuff!"

 

"Well, it's a good job I did because there was loads of stuff in there that you had neglected to tell me!" Vanessa counters, her hands on her hips as she shakes her head at him, "You didn't tell me half of the stuff that went on with him or the crazy shit he's done!"

 

"You're making it sound that that happened yesterday!" Seth accuses her whilst trying not to think about all the really personal stuff that's kept in those files, half of which _he_ hasn't even seen, "That was years ago, he's fine now!"

 

"Is he?" Vanessa scoffs and Seth is desperately wondering what on earth he can do to make her see sense, "Is he _really_ Seth? Because after today's little display I don't think he is."

 

"What do you mean "after today's little display?" Seth snarls suddenly as his hatred of her comes back full force, " _You fucking threw Uncle fucking Eddie at him_!"

 

"See, I knew this would happen! You always take his side!" Vanessa screams abruptly as she boils over with rage, "You _saw_ what happened, how Richie pushed me with all that rubbish he was saying. And he left Eddie there on purpose, you _know_ that's true Seth! He wouldn't listen when everyone told him to get rid of the urn; now you know why!"

 

"What the fuck are you talking about??!" Seth seethes incredulously, "It's not like he handed you the urn and said "Hey, throw this at me!"

 

Vanessa doesn't seem to have an answer for that and instead, she just stands there clenching her jaw and picking through the Oakhampton stuff for the admissions slip. After about a second or two she appears completely calm again and it makes Seth's head hurt at how she can go from talking about having someone's brain cut to pieces to calmly reading through leaflets. Seth is very used to Richie's particular train of irrational thoughts and back when Richie was really bad, he had learned very quickly how to get his brother to stop, take a breath, and really think about what he was saying. Vanessa just seems to be on a whole other stratosphere and Seth is almost inclined to believe that this is all one big joke; that Richie and Kate are going to pop out from somewhere any minute now and yell surprise. Speaking of Kate, it doesn't seem like Oakhampton is going to allow conjugal visits. 

 

 "What about Kate?" Seth asks quietly as he watches Vanessa flit between rage and serenity; the vein in her temple throbbing, "You planning on sticking her in there as well?"

 

‘She can visit," Vanessa says briskly as she slams the folder shut, "Or she can go back to Daddies. I'm sure she'll land on her feet either way."

 

"RICHIE.IS.NOT.FUCKING.GOING!" Seth bursts out abruptly as he smacks the papers out of her hand as if it's going to make this whole nightmare go away. 

 

"I don't see what the problem is here Seth," Vanessa huffs as she bends down to scoop the papers back up, "It's not like Richie's got a bunch of friends he'll be leaving behind; he never goes anywhere unless it's with that little beast anyway."

 

"You keep making digs at Richie for not having any friends," Seth reminded her savagely, "But I don't see people lining up to go out with _you_ either!"

 

"Don't compare me to that freak!" Vanessa spat back at him, her voice heaving with anger, "Besides; I have lots of friends!"

 

"Oh yeah," Seth spat nastily, "Name one that you've been out with in the last month!"

 

Vanessa had never had a lot of close friends throughout their relationship and most women Seth knew had a whole gaggle of them, ready to dissect their partners every move or comment on how awful Slutty Lola's From Work's dress was. Seth had always found it a little odd that none of the friends Vanessa did manage to make stuck around longer than a few months; normally due to some ridiculous reason or another. Granted, Seth didn't have a lot of friends either, but he didn't really need any because Richie had always been his best friend. They'd gone out with some chick that Vanessa had made friends with at the gym, Sally something or other, only for Seth having to pry the two women apart by the end of the night. Barely two minutes into the evening Vanessa had accused Sally of flirting with Seth and punched her in the face before the poor woman could even get a word out. That wasn't the first accusation of cheating that had come his way throughout their marriage, but Seth had always been honest with Vanessa and he'd had a string of hookups during their many, many breaks. It wasn't like Vanessa had a clean rap sheet either and she'd often gloat about all the guys she's slept with in the hopes of making Seth jealous. It had worked at first, and Seth found himself lavishing attention on his wife until their next row would kick off. After a time the jealousy had worn off and Seth found himself caring less and less about what Vanessa was getting up too; that still didn't make him leave her though.  

 

"This isn't about my friends," Vanessa said eventually, "This is about you telling Richie that he isn't a part of our lives anymore."

 

"He might not be a part of your life anymore," Seth informed her as his hands shook with barely suppressed rage, "But he's sure as hell still going to be a part of mine!"

 

"Oh come on Seth," Vanessa goaded him as she slinked towards him, "Richie won't want to see you ever again, not now he knows you've been sleeping with his girlfriend."

 

"For the last fucking time," Seth raged, "I'M NOT FUCKING SLEEPING WITH FUCKING KATE!"

 

"Look; once Richie is in the hospital-"

 

"HE'S NOT GOING TO A FUCKING HOSPITAL!" Seth roars straight in her face, "HE'S NOT GOING ANYWHERE!"

 

"I really don't see why you're making such a big deal out of this," Vanessa said, shaking her head once again as she looked at him with curious disbelief, "It's not like you haven't had him committed before."

 

That was a low blow and Seth is brought up short by her words; she knows how guilty he feels about that… about what he did or rather didn't do. Richie's commitment had sent Seth spiralling into a drug filled breakdown that he wasn't even sure he wanted to get out off. He doesn't like to think about that period of his life so he always tries to push it as far out of his head as he can. It had all come to a head when Seth had woken up in a puddle of his own vomit on some strangers couch; Vanessa slumped in a bedraggled heap next to him. Eventually, he had stumbled into the bathroom, dry heaving and bringing up most of the alcohol and narcotics from last night. That was all he seemed to do back then; a continuous cycle of drink, drugs and more drink and everything else was just redundant. He'd just needed something to fill the never ending hole that Richie's absence had left behind and Seth had been all set to go and find another bottle or a needle when something had crunched beneath his feet. Looking down at the filthy tiled floor he found that he'd trodden on an old pair of thick, black reading glasses. The vomit that rushed back up to the surface was instantaneous and Seth had spent the next ten minutes with his head down the toilet. _You_ _left him_ , his brain hissed menacingly at him, you left your own brother all alone to rot whilst you stuffed your veins with poison. Seth hadn't _meant_ to leave but it was too horrible having to watch Richie's heartbreaking descent into madness, so Seth had run away and never looked back. Before he even realised what he was doing Seth had found himself behind the wheel of his car, ignoring Vanessa's plea for him to stay, and dove haphazardly to the hospital; desperate to see Richie. The staff had refused to let him in which was understandable considering that he was covered in vomit, had a weeks' worth of beard growth and looked high as shit. Seth had persisted, begging and pleading with them to let him see Richie; he only needed five minutes, just five minutes to say how sorry he was for abandoning his brother. Glenda, the head nurse, had been kind to him or as kind as she could to someone who was yelling in her face and causing a scene worthy of an Academy Award.

 

"This isn't how we do things Mr. Gecko," she had told him as Seth had tried to climb over the reception table, "How about once you've had a rest you can come back and then we'll discuss visiting your brother?" 

 

"There's nothing to discuss!" Seth had bellowed at her looking wild eyed and more than a little manic, " _I'm_ his brother; I don't need anyone's permission!"  

 

"Your Uncle revoked your visiting rights Mr. Gecko," Glenda told him gently as Seth stopped midway from getting on the table and stared at her as his eyes went wide with shock, "Even if we wanted to, we can't let you see him without your Uncle's permission."

 

It had only taken a minute for the realisation to hit Seth before he'd crumpled onto the floor, sobbing hysterically, whilst all the nurses flew into action around him; clearly, they were used to stuff like this. In the end, Glenda had taken him into the staff room and fed him a cup of tea and a biscuit.

 

"I'm a terrible person!" Seth had wept, tea sloshing all over the floor, "I fucked everything up! I just left him!"

 

"Your brother doesn't think that," she had said kindly, cutting through Seth's self-pity like a knife through butter, "In fact, he talked about you all the time."

 

It was years before Seth found out that Richie had been left so confused and distressed by his brother's sudden disappearance that he'd conjured up another delusion, one that involved Seth being captured by one of those snake bastards and being kept in a dungeon where his skin was slowly being stripped from his body. That had almost broken Seth's heart when he'd found out and he'd spent the whole day trying to apologise even though Richie had told him that he didn't need to.  

 

"Talk to your Uncle," Glenda had suggested when Seth's sobbing had been reduced to a low level hiccupping, "He'll want you to be involved in Richie's treatment but only if you can prove that you're in it for the long haul. Coming in and out of his life like this isn't going to help Richie get rehabilitated."

 

"Ok," Seth sniffled as he wiped his nose on his sleeve, "I'll talk to Eddie."

 

The nurses wouldn't let him leave until they were sure that Seth wasn't going to drive himself off a cliff or throw himself into the nearest lake. It was pitch black by the time he was waved off by a merry band of nurses but Seth didn't go home; instead, he just kept on driving. Ignoring Vanessa's persistent calls to his cell Seth had headed out onto the highway and in completely the opposite direction from where his wife was. Only he didn't end up at a bar this time like he had so many times before, and it was well after midnight before Seth had pulled up beside the orchard around the back of their old house. The grass only came up to his knees but it had seemed like a jungle back when he was a little kid and Seth wadded through the over grown grass until he came upon a familiar towering oak tree. Halfway up the trunk there was a large S followed by an R carved deep into the wood and Seth ran his fingers over the thick bark as the childhood memories came flooding back. This had been their refuge back when they were kids; a place of safety when Pa's cruelty seemed to know no bounds. Richie and Seth would sit up in the tree branches together for hours until it was dark enough so that they wouldn't be noticed sneaking in through the back door. Seth didn't blame Eddie for banning him from seeing Richie, he'd have done the same thing if the shoe was on the other foot, but seeing those faded letters carved into the trunk had tightened his resolve. 

 

"I'm coming buddy," Seth whispered as he traced his finger over those faded letters, "Just hang on a bit longer."

 

Ultimately it had taken Seth two months to get himself properly clean and sober, and even then he still had pass Uncle Eddie's rigorous screening process before he was allowed within three feet of his brother. Vanessa had begrudgingly kept off the booze and needles with him and had somehow turned it around so that the whole getting clean thing was her idea. She still tried to tempt him every now again but Seth's mind was focused on one thing and one thing only; Richie. Eddie had offered to go with him on his first visit back to the psychiatric hospital but Seth had insisted that this was something he needed to do alone. A team of nurses had bustled him in and kept trying to explain procedures like "What to do in an emergency" to him but Seth was barely listening to them; his excitement at finally seeing Richie had been too great. He barely even registered that they were leading him past the stark white room that Richie had previously been put in and onto the hospital wing. 

 

"Mr. Gecko," one of the teams of nurses had called out as Seth bounded forward through the double doors, "Mr. Gecko, wait!"

 

"Hey, buddy I-" Seth had froze midway in the doorway, the door hitting him in the back as he stared in disbelief at the skeletal like figure laying in the bed opposite him.  

 

Richie wasn't just thin; he was scarily thin. His long legs resembled a bundle of twigs hidden beneath a thick, starchy blanket. Each rib was visible beneath the thin hospital gown and seemed to knock painfully together whenever Richie's frail chest expanded in his futile attempt to breathe. They'd had to attach a chain just keep Richie's glasses from sliding off, his face so gaunt it had lost all the muscle definition and all that was left was skin and bone. Richie had always been tall and strong and able to kick anyone's ass; now he just looked like he'd wasted away to almost nothing. Because of you, you idiot, a nasty voice inside his head had spat and Seth brushed aside the tears that were threatening to drop and hurried over to Richie's bedside.  

 

"What's wrong with him?" Seth had whispered as Richie appeared to be unable to move or speak, "Richie?"

 

The doctors had quietly explained that Richie's mental state had rapidly deteriorated over the past few months and he'd fallen into something called a catatonic state; rendering him completely unresponsive. They'd used lots of other medical mumbo-jumbo that Seth didn't really understand because all he could focus on was just how _broken_ Richie had looked. Stumbling into a chair next to the bed, Seth had been afraid to touch anything lest he accidentally tugged on the feeding tube or the drip that had been inserted because Richie had stopped eating and drinking. At the very _worst_ Seth had expected Richie to be screaming or hysterical but not _this_. 

 

"I know you're in there," Seth had said quietly as Richie had laid motionless in the hospital bed, "I'm going to do _everything_ I can to find you."

 

Richie had just remained static with his head propped up against the pillows as he stared vaguely in Seth's general direction. He didn't respond when Seth called his name again or when Seth tried to tell about the movie he'd watched last night. Seth probably would have gotten more conversation out of the bedside table and he had grown increasingly more and more upset as the visit went on. Was this what it was going to be like from now on? Richie slipping further and further away whilst Seth just had to sit there and watch it happen? Seth didn't leave that time though; he stayed right there and held his brother's bony hand and carried on trying to reach him somehow. It was like he'd gone on autopilot the entire visit as the only thing that mattered was trying to get some flicker of recognition from his brother. It was a different story once he got back in his car as he started driving away from the hospital and his tough resolve had finally come crashing down. Uncle Eddie had made him pull over when Seth had called him and sobbed hysterically down the phone; barely able to see where he was going as tears streamed down his face. He's got a vague memory of Eddie tapping on his window and then hauling him into the back seat of his car.   

 

"I told you you should have let me go with you," Eddie had grumbled as he put Seth to sleep on his couch, tucking a blanket tightly him, "Didn't want you to have to go see him like that on your own."

 

"What if I can't help him?" Seth had wailed loudly, "What if he's stuck like that forever because of me?"

 

"Hey! It's no use blaming yourself now, that's not going to help Richie now is it?" Eddie had scolded as he fluffed up Seth's pillow, "Now get some rest. You've got a lot of work to do if you're going to help him get better."

 

Everyday day Seth had been at that hospital, everyday despite Vanessa's frequent outbursts that Seth shouldn't be troubling himself over Richie. It was his fault to get like that she used to tell him and it was almost like Vanessa was _willing_ for Richie to just fade away until he was a mere shadow of his former self. Seth wasn't about to let that happen, not if he had any say in it and after a while, it was like he could feel the _old_ Richie trying to claw his way back to the surface. The one who was kind to animals, loved books and would happily consume an entire bag of Sour Worms in one sitting and Seth was right there with his hand outstretched to help pull him back up.

 

"Seth?" Richie had mumbled groggily when he _finally_ started speaking again and Seth had almost had a heart attack he was so used to Richie being nonverbal and statue like. 

 

After that it was like a light bulb had gone on in Richie's head and his whole body started to painstakingly come back online. Naively, Seth had thought that they'd be well on their way to taking Richie home but the silence was just replaced with paranoid rants and Richie's continued insistence that the world was coming to an end. It was like that for months and Seth struggled through meetings with Richie's psychiatrist, not understanding a word of all the technical jargon they kept using, as they tried to come up with a plan to try and help him. Whenever he would come home upset and dejected, like the time when Richie had calmly told him that some wackjob called Amaru was trying to take over the world and was insistent that Seth had to let him out so he could stop her, Vanessa would try and convince him not to go back. Perhaps even worse was when it got close to the end of Seth's visit and Richie would start to get upset; begging to go home with him.

 

“I’m _fine_ Seth!” Richie would insist, even though just ten minutes previously he’d been rambling away incessantly in some weird language to someone who wasn't even there, “ _Please_ , just let me come home!”

 

“Not today buddy,” Seth would say sadly as he pried himself out of Richie’s grip, “Maybe next week, when you’re feeling better?”

 

Walk away; that’s what the nurses had told him to do whenever Richie got like that but Seth just ended up feeling he was abandoning his brother all over again.  Richie’s harrowing cries of “I want to go home!” would follow Seth all the way down the corridor as he tried to force his legs to keep moving. It wouldn’t be until he’d made it all the way back into his car and firmly shut the door before Seth would allow himself to completely breakdown over the reality of what was happening to his brother. Looking down at the “Specialist Treatment” pages that are scattered across the floor, Seth doesn’t think he has the strength to go through that again; neither of them did.  

 

“I said he’s not going,” Seth repeats, his voice nothing more than a deadly whisper, “And there’s nothing you can do to make him. _I’m_ his brother and _I’m_ the one that gets to say what’s best for him! Richie doesn't _need_ any of this!”

 

Vanessa smiles sadly at him as she comes close to him and tries to take hold of his hands even though Seth pulls himself free as soon as her skin touches his. She just keeps looking at him with that irritating look of satisfaction spread all over her face.

 

“But you’re not though, not anymore,” Vanessa says softly as a hint of a smile flashes across her lips, “I had the lawyer I spoke to about the bar change the power of attorney over from _you_ to _me_. I’ll be the one who decides on whats best for Richie from now on.”

 

She then pulls out another piece of paper and Seth takes it from her with trembling fingers, his heart starting to pound in his chest. It’s exactly like the one he had signed years ago; the one that gave him the legal right to look after Richie if he got sucked back down into his vampire snake fantasy again. Having power of attorney was supposed to be a safety net so that nobody would be able to just drag Richie away like last time. The brothers had discussed this at length and had agreed that Richie would go back to his old hospital; not some freaky place like the one that Vanessa had picked out. Wait… Seth’s chest starts to hurt when his eyes land on the fact that it’s _her_ name and not _his_ that’s printed in big black letters on the bottom. No… No! 

 

**_“… removing Mr. Seth Gecko as power of attorney for Mr. Richard Gecko due to unsuitable behaviour including drug abuse, alcoholism, and grievances with the law. All rights shall be terminated and Mrs. Vanessa Gecko will have full control over the health, well-being and assets of Mr. Richard Gecko. An order of no contact has been issued for Mr. Seth Gecko upon Mr. Richard Gecko’s arrival at Oakhamptons facility. A Prefrontal Cortex Lobotomy will be performed on Mr. Richard Gecko on the twenty-third of this month. This decision is final and in accordance with the law and any objections will be denied.”_ **

 

The words on the paper hit him like a ton of bricks and Seth’s legs start to feel like they’re made of jelly; shaking uncontrollably as he struggles to remain upright. This _can’t_ be right! They _can’t_ just change everything because Vanessa made up some pack of lies about Richie being some kind of crazed lunatic can they?! The room starts to spin again and Seth abruptly finds himself on his knees; clutching his chest as his lungs refuse to take in oxygen. Everything around him suddenly seems to quiet and too loud at the same time and Seth’s brain formulated no thoughts other than to register that he was in complete and utter shock. 

 

"He's not normal Seth." Vanessa said as she knelt down next to Seth and patted him lightly on the arm, "This will be better for everyone, you'll see that when he's not running around acting like a crazy person all the time."

 

Her comment is so bizarre and so far removed from the realms of regular thinking that all Seth can do is stare at her open mouthed whilst Vanessa snuggles up next to him; laying her head on his shoulder.

 

“Then it will just be the two of us,” she whispers, holding on tight to his arm, “Like it was always meant to be.”

 

As Vanessa cuddles into him an image of Richie flickers inside Seth’s head, except he’s not young and vibrant like he is now. This Richie is laying shrivelled and shrunken in a hospital bed, drool running down his chin as he stares blackly at the stark white walls. Eyes that were once so alight with intelligence and curiosity about the world are dead and unseeing. No noise escapes him; he cannot speak or move or even think anymore. A small scar just inside his eye socket is the only evidence of where the lobotomist tool had struck its final blow. 

 

"Richie’s not going anywhere,” Seth tells Vanessa as he pulls himself free from her clutches, the duty of care letter clenched tightly in his fist, “ _Do you hear me_?! You ring those people and you tell them that you made a mistake and that Richie isn't going to be joining their little science factory."

 

Then he’s on his feet and hunting through the stack of papers he keeps stuffed inside one of the drawers on the TV unit. The number for the lawyer he hired is in there somewhere and Seth’s is already cursing himself that he didn’t take Richie up on his offer to organise his paper work in “the correct and proper fashion” for him. What he needs is to get Richie out of the house and as far away as quickly as possible but he can’t find the lawyers number anywhere. Vanessa appears next to him and watches him with a look of vague look of annoyance on her face whilst Seth frantically tears through all the random bits of paper he’s accumulated. He’d _thought_ that once she understood that he wasn’t messing around and that she needed to put a stop to all this than Vanessa would have started to see reason. Instead, however, she just stares impassively at him with her arms folded across her chest; uninterested that what she’s done is truly beyond being a bit of a bitch, it’s barbaric.

 

"I'm sorry Seth but I'm not going to do that; I paid good money to get him a place there,” Vanessa informs him, sounding inexplicable rationale as Seth almost tears his hair out in frustration, “This is for your own good! Once you've has some time apart, you'll see how much of a drain he was on you!”

 

Abandoning his search for the lawyer’s number, Seth hurries back to the scattered remains of all the Oakhampton stuff almost rips the pages apart in his haste to find some answers. Maybe if he rings them and explains then they won’t come and take Richie away? 

 

"This is not happening, this is not happening," Seth mutters wildly as he desperately tears through the pages as he tries to find a number to call, "Why would you do this? Why would you try and take him away from me again?! You saw what it did to me last time!"

 

“BECAUSE HE’S A FREAK!” Vanessa explodes, her calm exterior melting away as her knuckles turn white from clenching her fists too hard, and her teeth grinding from the effort of keeping a lid on all her burning hatred for Richie.

 

Don’t!” Seth cries as he pauses from trying to find something, anything that will help him save Richie, “Don’t you dare call him that again! Richie is wonderful and unique and just because his brain doesn't think like everyone else’s, that doesn't give you the right to start cutting bits of it out!

 

“YES IT DOES! I saw was how he dragged you down and made you feel like everything was your fault," Vanessa reels as she pulls the brochure out of his hands before he can stop her, "Crying all the time and acting like an ungrateful spoilt brat! You know most of that was fake, don't you? Richie just couldn't stand the fact that you wanted to be with me so he acted out like a baby and you came running every time!"

 

Her words are like poison and Seth doesn’t understand how she can actually believe all the crap she’s saying. It’s like the stupid imaginary affair with Kate he was supposed to be having; Vanessa has just created a whole other reality in her head.

 

"What are you _talking_ about? Can you even hear what you're saying?" Seth yells at her in complete exasperation, "Do you seriously think that Richie wanted to be locked up? That he wanted to be taken away from his family just to spite someone he didn't even know existed?" 

 

Their marriage had been kept secret from Richie right up until the day he moved back home. It was a stupid thing to do, as Eddie was constantly reminding him, but Seth just kept putting it off until it was too late. Back then it was like he lived in two different worlds; one where Vanessa cooked him dinner and acted like a Stepford wife and another one where he spent hours trying to convince Richie that snake vampires didn’t exist.  Seth had never even mentioned that he was even seeing anybody because in all honesty, what was the point? At the time it was unlikely that Richie would ever even meet Vanessa and his brother got extremely anxious whenever Seth mentioned someone he didn’t know. In Richie’s jumbled mind everyone that wasn’t either Seth or Eddie could potentially be one of these tentacle things and Seth didn’t need Richie freaking out over the thought that he might unknowingly be living with one. 

 

"Oh, of course he did! Even when you dragged him back here he always had to be the centre of attention!” Vanessa pouts like a toddler that’s about to throw a tantrum of epic proportions, “Face it Seth; Richie never wanted you to be happy, that's why he tried to sabotage our relationship every chance he got!"

 

“You really think that Richie tried to get in the way of our marriage?” Seth asks her, “Cus the only one that ever caused problems in our marriage was _you_!”

 

“ _Me_? It wasn’t _me_ that screamed at the mailman or ruined my Thanksgiving dinner because, just for once, you focused your attention on me!” Vanessa yelled at him, “Every problem we’ve ever had has all been down to Richie! If you’d just…”

 

Seth isn't listing to her; if he drives fast enough he can make it back to Richie’s in about forty minutes max if he really puts his foot down. He’s not about to sit here and let his brother be rounded up by some ghouls in white coats and carted off never to be heard from again. Something in his gut is telling him that Richie is still safe because no matter how angry Kate is at him, she would have called if anything had happened; she loves Richie too much to not ask Seth for help. Shoving his jacket back on he turns to the table where he threw his car keys down, only to find they're not there. He’s about to tip the table over in frustration when he hears a jingling sound and Seth looks up to find Vanessa holding his keys in the palm of her hand. 

 

“Vanessa,” Seth says through gritted teeth, his hand outstretched towards her, “Give.me.the.keys!”

 

“No,” she says defiantly as she stows them carefully away in the front pocket of her jeans, “No; I think you’re going to stay right here and talk to me for once.”

 

“I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS!” Seth shouts as he takes a step towards her, “GIVE ME MY KEYS SO I CAN LEAVE.”

 

“Why? So you can run off and pander to that nasty little girl and a brother that doesn’t even care about you?” Vanessa fires back at him, “I’m the only one that really cares about you, Seth! ME! Only you’d rather spend time with those freaks!”

 

“Fine,” Seth says, throwing his hands up and taking his phone out again, “I’ll call a cab.”

 

The phone is barely out of his pocket when Vanessa darts towards him and Seth lets out a yelp of pain as her fingernails dig into the back of his hand as she tears the phone away from him.

 

“I said we’re not done talking!” she screeches as she hurls his phone into the wall; smashing it into tiny pieces. 

 

Before Seth can stop she’s charged over to the kitchen and pulled one of the drawers out, sending knives and forks crashing to the floor. Then she’s back; a cheese knife held firmly in her grip. 

 

“YOU’RE NOT LEAVING!” she screams as she waves the blunt blade around, her eyes almost popping out of their sockets she’s in such a state. 

 

Unless Seth turned out to be made of mature cheddar cheese, it’s unlikely that the blade will do any harm but he’s still extremely disturbed that her first instinct is to go for a weapon. He could take her if he had to but then Vanessa is muttering distractedly to herself about how “it wasn’t supposed to be like this” and “..all Richie’s fault!” and the blade slips from her grasp and onto the floor. Quick as a flash, Seth darts forward and kicks it under the couch before Vanessa can stop him. That doesn’t refrain her from blocking the doorway though and Seth finds his bid for freedom once again thwarted by her as Vanessa glares angrily at him. 

 

“Vanessa,” Seth says as calmly as he can, “I need to leave. Now.”

 

They both circle each other like two sparring lions and Vanessa starts breathing heavily, her whole body shaking like a volcano that’s about to erupt. Her eyes are full of furry, her teeth gnashed together and her hands clench and unclench at such a rapid pace that Seth can see blood on her palms. Then, almost as suddenly as it started, she’s reverted back to the weirdly calm demeanour thats she’s been flip flopping between all night. Seth backs quickly away from her, ensuring that there’s enough space between them should Vanessa run at him and attack.  

 

“Now, you’re going to wait here until I get back,” Vanessa says in that jarring happy, placid tone so that is really starting to scare Seth, “I’ve got a surprise for you!”

 

Then she’s off, heading out of the living room and leaving Seth to scramble around for the shattered remains of his phone; desperately trying to put the pieces back together. It’s become clear that what he presumed would be an heated exchange between himself and Vanessa about their impending divorce has quickly become a rescue mission. All Seth needs to to quickly get a text or a call out to Kate but his phone refuses to turn on. After fiddling with it for a few more minutes Seth eventually admits defeat and abandons it when he hears the sounds of Vanessa’s footsteps coming back towards him. I’ve got to get out of here, Seth thinks wildly, as his eyes dart back and forth from the door as he tries to think of a way out. Vanessa has clearly lost it and the longer Seth keeps feeding into her deranged plans, the less time he has to try and save Richie. He can hear her crashing around in the hallway closet and he doesn’t fancy his chances if he tries to run right past her. Dashing over to the window Seth peers out to see how high up they are; maybe he could jump? Before he can even pull the window open there’s a noise behind him and Seth’s heart sinks when he turns around to find Vanessa in the doorway.

 

“Seth?” she asks him and it's then that he notices that she’s holding two suitcases, “What are you doing? I packed some of your stuff, just a few bits; if we leave now then we can still make our flight.”

 

“Flight?” Seth asks, his leg still propped up on the windowsill as he stares at her completely dumbfounded, “What flight?”

 

Setting the cases down, Vanessa picks up her handbag from the table and starts rummaging through it; Seth passport clearly visible in the inside pocket. Moving away from the window and, against his better judgement, Seth comes to stand next to her and watches in horror as she pulls a wad of travel documents out.  

 

“To Hawaii silly,” Vanessa says distractedly as she double checks she has the right tickets, “You said you’d always wanted to go with me.”

 

“ _No_ ,” Seth says as he starts to freak out even further, “I said I’d always wanted to go with _Richie_ so we could run around and pretend to be fucking Steve McGarrett and fucking Danny Williams from Hawaii Five-O like we used to do back when we were ten! 

 

“Why are you being so mean?” Vanessa snaps at him as she stuffs the tickets back in her purse, “I did everything I could to make this easy on you so you wouldn’t even have to lift a finger! We were supposed to go on a nice holiday together and then I was going to tell you all about Richie when we got back; now he’s ruined that as well! You could at least be grateful for it!”

 

“ _Grateful_?” he hisses at her, “Just what exactly am I meant to be fucking _grateful_ for Vanessa? The fact that you sold my Uncle house without telling me or that you signed Richie up for a long term stay at Club Loony Bin?!”

 

If anyone shows up at that house thinking that they’re going total Richie away, Seth will be waiting for them on the front porch like Atticus Finch with a fucking shotgun. 

 

“We can talk about this once we’re on the plane if you want,” Vanessa offers as she starts hauling the cases out to the hallway, “If-”

 

“WE’RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE!,” Seth bellows, his face screwed up with rage over all the crazy shit she’s put him through this evening, “IT’S OVER VANESSA!”

 

Vanessa had given him every reason to leave, like her hostility towards Richie, the constant accusations of cheating and still he tried to ignore them; like a drug addict dying from an overdose. She just seemed to have this hold over him that Seth just couldn't seem to shake and at this point, he wasn't even sure if he’d ever loved Vanessa at all. Maybe things would've gone differently; maybe they could have both changed and let themselves grow into something beautiful. Or maybe they’d finally crush each other into a million pieces; just like they're doing now.

 

"YOU THINK I WOULD LET YOU DO THAT TO RICHIE?” Seth rages as Vanessa’s face goes white with shock, “YOU THINK I WOULD JUST HAND HIM OVER AND LET YOU CARVE HIM UP AND THEN BURY THE BITS THAT ARE LEFT OVER! HE’S MY _BROTHER_ VANESSA!"

 

“Stop being so dramatic; it's fine,” Vanessa says sounding like she hadn’t even heard Seth tell her that their marriage was over, “It won't hurt him HEY!”

 

Seth had pushed past her and started tearing up all the realtor adverts, the Oakhampton rubbish and the letter condemning Richie to life of bleakness. Once he’s done the living room looks like it’s covered in confetti; much like Richie’s birthday decorations. Ripping the stuff up won’t make it go away but Seth will be gone from here in a minute or two; he can make it back to Richie before anything happens to him.  

 

“You’re a sick woman Vanessa and I'm sorry I ever met you,” Seth tells his soon to be ex wife, “And I'm even sorrier that I ever married you!” 

 

“You’re just upset because I booked a holiday without telling you,” Vanessa sighs like they’ve just had a mild argument, “How about I make it up to you once we get to the hotel? I brought some new underwear especially for you.”

 

She smiles seductively at him, her breasts pushed out in a way that previously Seth would have thought was sexy but now it makes him feel physically ill. The fact that Vanessa is thinking about sex when she’s tried to have Richie committed to a mental asylum against his will just proves to Seth how deep her cruelty goes. 

 

“You think I’d want to be anywhere _near_ you?” Seth asks and he laughs cruelly at her, “You think I’d even want to _touch_ you after what you’ve tried to do to Richie? YOU EVIL BITCH!”

 

Vanessa looks at him like he’s slapped her; her eyes going wide as it finally starts to sink in that Seth isn’t playing around and its over between them for good. Its almost like her whole entire face is crumbling and is replaced a desperate, furry filled woman.

 

“But I love you!” Vanessa screams as she tries to cling onto Seth’s arm to prevent him from leaving, “And you love me!”

 

Grabbing her by the arm Seth pulls Vanessa roughly away from him and holds her at arm’s length, even as she desperately tries to get closer to him.  It makes him feel sick just having to be this close to the person that has tried to cause so much devastation in his life. A cruel sneer forms on Seth’s handsome face and he leaned forward, eyes boring straight into Vanessa’s as she twisted in his grip.

 

"You say that like it’s supposed to mean something to me,” he whispered as Vanessa finally stopped struggling to listen to him, “Well, it doesn’t, not anymore.”

 

Vanessa lets out a loud wail and tries to pull away from him but there’s a dangerous look in her eyes and Seth takes it as a warning not to let her go just yet. 

 

“I’m going to ring that place and I’m going to tell them all about you,” he hisses in her ear as he tightens his grip on her arm, “I’m going to tell them that _you’re_ the one that’s mixed up in the head and not Richie. Maybe they can pick apart your brain instead!”

 

It’s a cruel and terrible thing to say and Seth wouldn’t really wish that on anyone, not even Vanessa, but at this point, he’s so blinded by his hatred for her that he doesn’t even care. Vanessa had tried to rip Richie away from his home, his family, and his mind for no other reason aside from the fact that she was jealous of him. Eddie, Kate, and Richie had only ever tried to make Vanessa feel part of the family even when she though she was mostly a complete bitch to them and this is the thanks they get? Richie stolen away in the dead of night to the funny farm, Kate made a spectacle of and poor Eddie desecrated all over the living room carpet. 

 

“Seth please!” Vanessa begs and more tears spill down her cheeks but Seth is wise to her little game now and he quickly cuts her off, shaking her hard.

 

“QUIET!” he roars before he grabbed Vanessa’s head and turned her face towards him, just to make sure she understood that this was it; their marriage was over, finished and there was nothing that she could say to convince him to stay, “I am not going to allow myself to be defeated by what I think love is supposed to be. I will not _allow_ myself to be abused again, not by _you_ and not by anyone else! Richie was right about you; you’re selfish and cruel and _I can’t stand the sight of you anymore_. You’re on your own Vanessa; have a nice life.” 

 

He releases his grip on her and Vanessa stumbles away from him, her face white as she tries to comprehend what’s just happened and this has all suddenly backfired on her. Pulling off his wedding ring Seth tosses it at her feet, giving her one last look of contempt before he strides out of the room.  

 

Clothes he can either re-buy or come back later to pick them up when Vanessa is at work but there are two personal items he's not leaving here without. Seth strides up the stairs and into their bedroom; grabbing an old rucksack from the closet as he goes. His wife is clearly unhinged and the sooner that Seth gets the hell out of here the better. Throwing the bag down on the bed, Seth picks up the photo frame that Vanessa was always trying to get rid off; smiling as his childhood self-looked back at him. They were around four and six, both of them still small enough to fit on Eddie's lap at the same time. Seth had always liked that picture as the only trace of Ray was the tape holding Richie's glasses together and the bruise on Seth's knee. However what he liked most was how happy the three of them looked, especially Richie, and it always made Seth smile whenever he looked at it. Eddie had taken them to his run down old lake house and tried to teach them how to swim; Seth had never really got the hang of it. They'd spent the evenings roasting S'mores on the camp fire whilst Eddie taught them all the names of the stars.

 

"You'll always find your way back home," he'd told them as he'd tucked them both into the same sleeping bag, "If you just look up."

 

It had been a Christmas present from Richie during his third year in the psych hospital, he'd even hand carved the wooden frame. Richie was always making stuff for him, pictures, paintings and assorted craft work; even when he was a little kid. Seth had kept it by his bedside ever since and ignored Vanessa's insistence that he throws it away. Apparently, any picture that didn't include her in it "wasn't appropriate" for their home and Seth had had to put the rest of them in a box over at El Ray's. Kate had grilled him about when she'd found them scattered all over the floor after Waffles had sniffed them out; his puppy drool all over them.

 

"So you can't even have pictures of your own brother?" she'd snorted as she carefully dried off a really nice one of Seth and Richie from when they'd gone a road trip to see the Grand Canyon, "That's got healthy relationship written all over it."

 

"We are not picture people," Seth had lied as Kate rolled her eyes at him, "Besides, I've got one picture up."

 

"Wow, one," Kate replied sarcastically as she gathered up the pictures and put them in her purse, "I'll give these to Richie; it'll remind him what you look like since you're hardly ever allowed to see him."

 

Seth didn't need to feel any more guilty than he already did, so he'd let her take them and tried to steer the topic back to Richie's birthday. Placing the picture frame carefully on the bed, he moves onto his bedside drawer and digs through the contents. The rest of the house is silent, presumably, Vanessa has gone to lick her wounds in private, good; she can take her crazy someplace else. After pulling out a bunch of discarded condom packets, assorted change and other random bits of crap, Seth finally finds what he's looking for. Removing a small, black box he finds the simple, black leather strapped watch that Eddie had brought him for his twenty-first birthday still intact. It had been relegated to his draw ever since Vanessa had brought him a ridiculously expensive and gaudy Rolex for his birthday a few years ago. 

 

"You don't need that tatty old thing," she'd informed him as she practically ripped it off his wrist, "It looks so old."

 

Oblivious to the fact that Seth actually preferred his old watch, she'd carelessly thrown it aside even as Uncle Eddie, Richie, and Kate were sat there watching. It had been embarrassing and awkward, especially seeing as Richie had the exact same watch; a gift on his own twenty-first and Seth had always liked that they matched. Well, at least he doesn't have to pretend he likes the stupid thing anymore, Seth thinks, as he pulls the gold monstrosity off from around his wrist. Tossing it to one side, he's about to put on his old one back on, when an angry bellow followed by a loud crash issues from the kitchen.

 

"Oh shit," Seth mutters to himself, hastily pulling Eddie's watch out from the box. 

 

The sound of plates breaking gets louder and louder, clearly, Vanessa is taking her anger out on their chinaware and Seth can't get out of the door fast enough. The picture and the watch are all he really wanted; he'll send one of the guys from the bar to get whatever Vanessa doesn't destroy later. If Richie wasn't so fucking tall he could have borrowed some of his clothes until he got sorted; that's if Richie hasn't already been carted off to the nuthouse. There's another loud crash, closer this time, and Seth turns around to find Vanessa standing in the bedroom doorway; her face wild with fury and a dish clenched in her fist.

 

"Ness," Seth tries but it's pointless; Vanessa hurls the dish directly at his head, leaving Seth only seconds to duck out of the way.

 

It shatters into the wall behind him, bits of china flying everywhere, and Seth throws his hands up to protect his face just in time. He's about to yell at her, to ask what the fuck she thinks she doing, when Vanessa lets out an angry scream and starts charging towards him. 

 

" _YOU FUCKING BASTARD_!!" she screams as her face twists with rage, " _YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT_!"

 

Seth doesn't even have a chance to back away; Vanessa's hand strikes out, slapping him hard across the face. The sheer force of it almost makes his neck do a one eighty and Seth can already feel his cheek stinging. They've done this dance before; but never has it gone _this_ far and Seth glares angrily at her. The memory of Vanessa hitting Richie with the same amount of force is bubbling to the surface. He should have stopped her, grabbed her hand or shut the whole insanity that was Richie's birthday down before it had gotten this far. Seth can take a slap or two, he's used to it, but he should, never, ever have let Vanessa within three feet of his brother. 

 

"You can't know me as well as you think you do 'Ness," he quipped as he rubbed the spot on his cheek where she'd struck him, "If you think hitting me is going to make me want to stay."

 

Vanessa stares at him, her breathing coming out in shorts bursts and her face flushed, and she almost looks sorry; but not sorry enough. 

 

"I wouldn't have had to do it if you'd just listened to me!" she cried and Seth isn't sure who she's trying to convince with that one, "This is all Richie's fault anyway!"

 

"Uh huh, you keep telling yourself that Vanessa," Seth says dryly as he turns away from and begins to gather up his things, "You can blame Richie all you want but you'll be doing it alone and without me."

 

Her hand closes around his wrist, yanking him back towards her, and her grip is like steel even as Seth tries to pull himself free.

 

" _I told you_ ," she hisses as her nails dig into his skin, " _You're not going anywhere_!"

 

"And I told _you_ ," Seth snarls, wrenching his hand free as he points his finger in her face, "We're done, Vanessa. This marriage was a sham from start to finish."

 

Vanessa's not listening to him though; her eyes have zeroed in on Eddie's old watch that’s clenched in Seth's fist. Seething, she tears it out of his hand, even as Seth is asking her what the fuck she's doing, and throws it to the ground; bringing the heel of her shoe down and smashing it to pieces.

 

"Why do you insist on pissing me off?!" she snarls, grinding her boot down as Seth stares at her in shock, "I brought you a nice, expensive watch so you wouldn't have to wear this piece of old crap!"

 

Shoving her out of the way, Seth picks up the shattered remains of his watch with trembling fingers. This was the only sentimental thing he's really got left of Eddie and he can feel tears beginning to form along his lash line. Eddie who'd raised him like a son and taught him that family always comes first, no matter what your insecure wife tells you. 

 

"The only person you'll ever truly be able to rely on is this one right here," Eddie had told him, as he lifted a then three-year-old Seth up to look at his brand new baby brother, "And me of course." 

 

Staring down at the broken pieces, his initial shock quickly gives way to red hot, burning fury. Vanessa is still standing there, her arms folded across her chest, but Seth is repulsed by the very sight of her and feeling stupider but the minute that he thought she’d just let him leave.

 

"What the _fuck_ is wrong with you?!" Seth cries, his whole body taut with anger as his fingers clench around the bits of broken glass, "WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"

 

Half of him expects her to scream at him; snarling some other barrage of hateful words at him about Richie, Eddie or Kate. Part of him even wants that, just so he can hear all that venom and know that he's seeing her for what she really is. That's his weak points and Vanessa knows that all too well; Seth's lost count of the number of fights he's been in over someone talking shit about Richie. Over the years Vanessa had found a way to pick and poke at those sore spots, without Seth even realising she was doing it. Or maybe he did but instead of confronting her about it, Seth had buried those thoughts for fear of being left alone again with his feelings of guilt and abandonment. It was a poor decision and one he's paying for now as Vanessa stands there, motionless, just inches away from him and breathing hard like an angry bull. 

 

"Fine," Seth snaps as he gathers up the picture frame and shoves it in her face, “But you see _these_ people? These people right here? _They're_ my proper family and I should never have been stupid enough to think otherwise!"

 

There's a slight pause, as Vanessa's eye flit from the picture then back to Seth again, her expression almost unreadable as her brain tries to compute what he's saying. 

 

"Why do I even bother," Seth mutters, shaking his head at her as he prepares to leave, only for the frame to be ripped out of his hands, "HEY!"

 

Vanessa stares a the picture for a minute or two, taking in the happy expressions on the two little boys faces and Uncle Eddie's arms wrapped tightly around them. Then, without warning, she brings it smashing down onto Seth's head with as much force as she can; bits of broken glass flying in every direction as she lets out a loud scream.

 

"THEY'RE NOT YOUR FAMILY!" Vanessa bellows, ripping the photograph from its frame and tearing it into pieces, "THEY DON'T LOVE YOU LIKE I DO!"

 

Seth's vision goes black for a minute or two and he stumbles backward, dazed, as Vanessa scatters the pieces on the floor near his feet. The room is spinning rapidly and it takes Seth a minute or two to focus on what just happened; Vanessa simmering away in front of him. 

 

"What the…?" he mumbles, touching his hand to his forehead and his eyes going wide as a smear of blood coats his fingertips.

 

Looking down at the shredded remains of the only childhood picture he has left, Seth turns to Vanessa and is about to say something when she explodes. 

 

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I NEED TO TELL YOU?" Vanessa bellows, battering him hard on the arm with the wooden picture frame, "NONE OF THOSE FREAKS CARE ABOUT YOU!"

 

The pain in his head intensifies, being hit on the arm isn't helping much either, and Seth tries to retain his balance as another wave of dizziness hits him. Blood is dripping down his forehead and into his eyes, obscuring his vision as Vanessa continues to scream incessantly at him. The cuff of his sleeve is bright red with blood when Seth brushes it against his forehead but he pays it no mind. He's never had a problem with blood; what with Richie cutting himself to pieces all the time and Pop giving him one too many bloody noses. The wooden frame connects painfully with his arm again as Vanessa deals him another blow; bringing Seth back to his senses. Grabbing her hand as she moves to strike him again, Seth pushes her away from him.

 

"They care about me a darn sight more than you do!" Seth tells her angrily; blood still dripping down his forehead, “Now get the _fuck_ away from me!”

 

He needs to leave now before either of them do something that they'll both regret. Pushing past her, Eddie's watch tucked safely in his pocket, Seth is almost at the door when Vanessa's hand locks around his arm. With an angry snarl, she pulls Seth back towards her; her finger nails digging deeper into his skin. Even through his confused haze, Seth can't help but feel a little frightened as spit flies out of her mouth. 

 

" _What_ did you say to me?" she hisses, her face just inches away from his and her eyes darting about all over the place, " _What did you just say to me_?"

 

Vanessa looks completely deranged; her hair is all over the place, makeup is sliding down her cheeks and her eyes are almost popping out of their sockets. Alarmed, Seth tries to shake her off, but Vanessa just digs her nails in harder as her jaw clenches repeatedly. 

 

"I-" she explodes, trying to hit him over the head again with the photo frame as Seth ducks out of reach, "AM-YOUR-FAMILY!" 

 

Screeching loudly, Vanessa goes to hit him again but Seth is ready for her this time, catching her easily by the wrist; squeezing the pressure points until she howls in pain and drops her weapon. Seth would never intentionally hurt her, no matter how much hateful shit she's said, but he's not about to stand there and be used as a punching bag either. Vanessa's not about to give up so easily though and even as he kicks the frame away, her other hand comes up and she grabs him by the hair; yanking his head to the left.

 

"VANESSA!" Seth cries as he feels a chunk of hair being torn out of his scalp, "STOP!"

 

"NO!" she hollered, gripping his hair tighter, "NOT UNTIL YOU UNDERSTAND!! NOT UNTIL YOU REALISE THAT _I'M_ THE ONLY ONE THAT LOVES YOU!"

 

Seth would like to point out the irony of that statement, as Vanessa claws at his scalp, but he's too busy trying to stop her attacking him with her other, wildly flailing hand. Tightening his grip on her wrist more than he'd like, Seth desperately tries to push her away from him but it doesn't make any difference. They're almost wrestling with each other at this point and Vanessa eventually does let go of his hair; opting to kick Seth in the leg instead. 

 

"Would-you-just-stop?!" Seth pants whilst Vanessa continues to try and kick him in the shin.

 

This is crazy on a whole other level, Seth realises as Vanessa starts screaming incoherently at him again. Richie's crazy he knows how to deal with; even if it is snake people and tentacle demons. Whatever the fuck is wrong with Vanessa Seth has no idea what to do with and he's not even sure he wants to. Seth would do absolutely anything to protect Richie from his own head but Richie has never done anything like this, he’s never straight up _attacked_ anyone. Despite Vanessa's insistence, Richie has never hurt anybody except himself and Seth was more likely to be wrestling knives away from him, rather than trying to stop Richie beating the crap out of him. He needs to get out of here, away from this absolute mess of a relationship and back home where he belongs. Vanessa calling that hospital might have been a bluff to get him to stay but Seth isn't about to take any chances; if anything happens to that kid, Seth will never forgive himself. 

 

"No, I won't stop!" Vanessa yells as she brings her fist down on him again, "I WON'T EVER STOP!"

 

They tussle for a bit, Vanessa still screaming rubbish at him, but Seth's getting the upper hand; he's had too much practice restraining unruly people before. In fact, he’s almost broken free when a burning pain shoots through the back of his hand. Crying out in pain, Seth looks down to find Vanessa biting down hard on his hand; sinking her teeth deep into his skin. 

 

 

"WHAT THE FUCK??! Seth roars as he tries to throw her off, but her teeth only dig in further, "GET THE FUCK OFF ME!"

 

Without thinking, he shoves Vanessa away from him as hard as he can; sending her slamming sideways into the wall. Puncture wounds mark the back of his hand and Seth cradles his injured appendage close to his chest; his head bursting with pain again. Wincing, he edges over to Vanessa to check she's ok, only for her to jump up screaming again. In fact, he's barely gone a few paces when she comes stampeding towards him, shoving him hard in the chest and yelling obscenities at him. Caught off guard, Seth staggers backward and crash lands on the bed whilst Vanessa stalks menacingly towards him.

 

"Ness," Seth says warningly as she comes to a halt in front of him, "You need to let me go, ok? We just don't work together; you know that."

 

"SHUT UP!" Vanessa screams at him, throwing her hands up and tearing at her own hair, "DON'T YOU SEE? THIS IS WHAT THEY WANT TO HAPPEN!"

 

"Who the fuck is _they_?" Seth yells back at her, his patience with the whole situation wearing drastically thin, "Who the fuck are you talking about?!"

 

"THAT BITCH AND THE SIDESHOW FREAK YOU CALL A BROTHER," Vanessa snarls at him, poking him hard in the chest, "THEY PLANNED ALL THIS FROM THE START! WELL, IT WON'T WORK! THEY WON'T SPLIT US UP!"

 

"Oh my god," Seth groans as his head sinks into his hands; it was like fucking ground hog day with her. 

 

At least when Richie started his decent into Crazy Land, he'd always come up with something new and inventive whenever he started ranting and raving. Seth had eventually resorted to writing everything down just so he could be aware when Richie was talking about somebody imaginary or not. The sheer scope of Richie's delusion could have made for an epic TV show but Seth had been more invested in trying to convince his brother that, no, the guy who owned the liquor store was not trying to sell them out to some imaginary vampire hunter.  

 

"What's happening to me?" Richie had asked him once; tearful and afraid after Seth had eventually found him miles from home, wandering around outside in the dead of night with no shoes on or any clue how he got there.

 

"You just need some rest buddy," Seth had told him as he as he made Richie lie down on the back seat of the car and put a blanket over him, "A good sleep is all you need."

 

Richie, unlike Vanessa, would at least try and listen to reason; until the demons in his head took over and Seth couldn't do anything but watch his baby brothers decent into complete and utter madness. Vanessa has no excuse for whatever the fuck it is that she's doing and Seth can't stay here a minute longer, it’s sending him a little crazy just listening to her. 

 

"You are clearly not listening to a word I'm saying are you?" he tells her, keeping his voice low and even in the vain hope that something might start to sink in, "Because if you _were_ then you'd realise that we've never been right, nothing about our marriage has ever been right!"

 

"That's not true!" Vanessa fires back at him, her whole body coiled up like a snake ready to strike, "We were fine until you brought that nut job back to live with us! Then it was all about Richie; you didn't give a shit about me!"

 

"Define fine Vanessa," Seth retorts, "Cus I don't think two drug addicts snorting coke off each other and shooting up in alley ways makes for a very fore filling relationship!"

 

Vanessa bristles like she always does whenever Seth reminds her that the way they met wasn't all hearts and flowers, or even in the least bit romantic. It had been dirty and seedy; born out of Seth desperate desire not to be alone. Her cold fury burnt with dangerous intensity and her eyes almost bulged out of her head as she stared at him. Seth never worries about Vanessa's frequent little explosions of rage that seem to shower him in red hot sparks; it was these bitterly cold, slow burning rages that scared him and had always threatened to engulf their relationship like a sinking ship. _That's_ why Seth so often allowed himself to be forced into doing things he didn't want to, like cutting his brother out of his life or moving to the suburbs, because the effort of having to deal with Vanessa was just too much. Seth had only ever wanted to have an easy life; after his shitty childhood, he thought he at least deserved that. As predicted Vanessa is none too happy about being reminded that their first meeting wasn't the stuff of romance novels. 

 

"You're just remembering it wrong," she huffed, fidgeting with her hair the way she always does whenever something isn't going her way, "I _knew_ we were meant to be together right from the start!"

 

Now it's Seth's turn to pour scorn on Vanessa's little trip down memory lane. He'd been coming down off a three-day drug and drink binge when he'd stumbled into the Blackbird Bar; sweating profusely as he scoped out someone who looked like they were packing. First, however, he'd needed a drink or five and had propped himself up on a bar stool and proceeded to as drunk as humanly possible. The plan was to either drink himself into such a stupor he could forget the last couple days, or fill himself with enough drugs that he wouldn't remember the next few. The phone in his pocket had buzzed incessantly; no doubt it was Eddie calling to tell him to stop being a stupid idiot and get his ass back home. Ignoring it, whiskey had slid down Seth's throat as he tried to blot out the memory of Richie, kicking and screaming, as a team of nurses strapped him down even tighter to his hospital bed. That was the first time he'd been allowed to visit since they'd had Richie moved to his new hospital and the second was just as bad so Seth had bailed out on the third; guilt and shame needling at him as he opted to score some heroin instead, shooting up in his room. It was too hard to see Richie like that so why should he put himself through it? It was like some horrible punishment, having to sit there and do nothing whilst Richie went fell further and further into insanity. Uncle Eddie had resorted to kicking his door in during the middle of the day when Seth hadn't turned up to visit Richie like they had arranged. 

 

"What are you doing?" he'd demanded, staring down at Seth's strung out face, the used needles and discarded tin foil, "WHAT THE _FUCK_ DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING TO YOURSELF?!"

 

Eddie had been _so angry_ but Seth was angry too; angry that something had crept into his brothers head and turned him into something that Seth didn't even recognise. If Seth wanted to block all that out with a little recreational drug use, who was Eddie to stop him? 

 

"Leave me alone old man," Seth had slurred, pulling the blanket over his head and hoping that Eddie would just fuck off and let him wallow in self-pity in peace.

 

"Did you ever stop to think that you're the _only person_ ," Eddie had snapped, dragging the blanket off him and ripping the curtains open, "That Richie doesn't think is one of those fucking tentacle things?"

 

Then he'd found himself in the back of Eddie's car as his uncle drove him out to the hospital; despite Seth's insistence that he didn't want to go. It had been just as bad as he'd feared. Richie even looked completely deranged now as his hair was a mess, glasses were all wonky and he'd lost even more weight than when he'd first been admitted. Seth had hovered awkwardly in the background whilst Eddie had somehow got Richie to sit down and keep still for a minute.

 

"Looks like you've got a nice view here kiddo," Eddie had said, pointing at the beautifully tendered flower beds outside the window, whilst Richie had chewed at his fingernails until they bled. 

 

Eddie had pulled Richie's hand away and held onto it; glaring at Seth until he sat down with them. Then Richie had started talking and it had taken Seth less than five minutes to realise that Richie wasn't even talking to _him;_ he was talking to the phantom vampire lady in his head. That's when Seth just got up and walked out, despite the protests of the nurses and Eddie who kept trying to give him tips on how to deal with his wildly manic brother. Even though he knew deep down that that he was being silly, it had stung that Richie would seemingly rather talk to someone that wasn't even real rather than his own brother. Maybe that was Richie's form of punishment for Seth getting him locked up in here in the first place; to become even crazier just to spite him. Watching Richie deteriorate so badly had sent Seth into a tail spin of drugs and alcohol, cumulating in him scoring a baggie full of heroin from some kid who barely looked old enough to drive. That's when the tall, sexy brunet had strode over to him, her hips swaying in her daisy dukes, and sat up on a stool next to him.

 

"You want some company?" she'd whispered seductively as she put her hand on his leg and Seth knew he was in trouble, Vanessa was exactly his type; dangerous. 

 

Seth did want some company; he was _desperate_ for it. _Desperate_ not to have to listen to his little brother ranting and raving in some made up language, or screaming about a secret temple that a thousand-year-old vampire snake queen was stuck in. Whether he likes it or not, Vanessa had filled the void he'd created for himself out of guilt and resentment; sliding through his veins and being the one habit he just couldn't kick. They'd spent their first night together in a motel getting high and fucking each other senseless. It wasn't exactly the romantic fairy tale that Vanessa had convinced herself of, far from it. It was weeks before Seth had told her that he even had a brother who was currently locked up in the loony bin; booze pouring down his throat as he said it. Discovering that Seth actually came with a very important piece of baggage attached to him was when Vanessa really began trying to separate Seth from his family, he was just too high to see it at the time. In Seth's mind, Vanessa was the only normal part of his life and the only person who seemingly gave a shit about him. Plus, she wasn't locked up in a padded room twenty-four seven and fed his need for drugs and liquor without questions. Despite Eddie's insistence that he come home and get some help, Seth had instead stuck closer and closer to Vanessa.  

 

"Eddie doesn't understand you," Vanessa would tell him as she slid a fresh needle into his arm, "Not like I do."

 

Ultimately Seth always ended up agreeing with her, even when Eddie would come knocking on the door and demanding that Seth clean himself up and visit his brother. They'd always end up arguing with Eddie trying to get Seth to see reason, whilst Seth accused his uncle of trying to control of his life. What was the point of seeing Richie anyway? Richie couldn't even be bothered to try and get better so why should Seth drag himself all the way down there? It was the drugs, and Vanessa, talking and Eddie had told him as much. Then, after a while, Eddie had stopped calling; one fucked up kid was enough for him to deal with and Seth had felt even more lost and alone. 

 

"Richie would be ashamed of you," Eddie had said sadly, the last time he'd come over and found Seth strung out on the couch, “Ashamed that his _own brother_ left him to rot whilst he picked up with some floozie." 

 

Seth had rolled over and ignored him; waiting until the front door slammed before he burst into tears. He hadn't seen Richie in months, couldn't even stand to say his name out loud, and his absence had caused a constant, never ceasing ache in his chest. There'd be something on the TV, a film or some science program that Richie would like, and Seth would think, "I've got to tell Richie about that," only to remember that his brother was most likely strapped to a hospital bed and wasn't even allowed to watch TV. It's not Richie's fault, he kept telling himself, but the drugs and Vanessa seemed to convince him that it was; that Richie should have tried a little harder to be normal. 

 

"You don't need him," Vanessa would whisper as she pressed herself up against him at night, when Seth's guilt had almost threatened to drown him, "You don't need him anymore."

 

Yes, I do, Seth had thought miserably as she climbed on top of him, I need him more than anything. That was the beginning of the rift that had threatened to pull Richie and Seth apart for good; Seth just hadn't wanted to admit it at the time. Well, he could sure as shit see it now, what with Vanessa bearing down on him and ranting about some epic love story that she'd made up in her head.

 

"It was always just supposed to be _us_!" she wails, flapping about like an overgrown bird as Seth sighs heavily once again, "You didn't need _him_ or _Eddie_ or that wretched little beast; _I'm_ the one that looked after you when they all abandoned you!"

 

That's a nice story, Seth thinks, but he had been the one to leave first; ditched his family because what was going on with Richie was too hard to deal with. If he hadn't been so self-indulgent than maybe Richie would have gotten better sooner and Eddie wouldn't have ended up all over the carpet. Looking at Vanessa now, her face full of rage and spite, Seth knows that nothing will fix the rift between them; even if he was desperate enough to want too. There's no way that's fucking happening even if Vanessa hadn't tried to get Richie shipped off to a mental hospital or thrown down with Kate like they were members of a pro wrestling team. After everything that's come out tonight, all the lies and all the deceit, all Seth wants to do is get as far away from here as possible. 

 

"I'm leaving," he tells her bluntly, carefully putting Eddie's watch in his pocket and getting to his feet, "This is it for us Vanessa; for good this time."

 

A hand strikes out and grabs the back of his shirt as he moves to leave, pulling him back down onto the bed again; Vanessa quickly jumping on top of him. Anger radiates off her as she glares down at him, grabbing fistfuls of his shirt even as Seth tries to pry her hands away. 

 

" _I told you_ ," she seethes, her hands digging into his chest, " _You're not going anywhere_!"  

 

Then her fists start reigning down on him; punching and slapping at Seth with a pent up fury as she screams with rage. It happened so quickly that Seth didn't even have time to react, not even when she strikes him open fisted across the face. Another blow connects painfully with the side of his head and splits open the cut from his previous injury; blood trickling down the side of his head. Her nails are clawing at his neck now, shredding his skin as Seth desperately tries to get her to stop. 

 

"YOU'RE FUCKING STAYING HERE!" Vanessa screams, pounding her fists into his chest, "YOU'RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE!"

 

"Vanes-" Seth attempts but then her hands lock around his throat, thumbs pressing down onto his windpipe as she shakes him back and forth like a rag-doll. 

 

"I WON'T LET YOU LEAVE!" she yells, her face only inches from his as Seth struggles for breath, "I WON'T LET YOU GO BACK TO THAT FREAK!"

 

Seth brings his hands up and tries to pry her fingers away but it's useless; Vanessa just won't let go. In desperation, he tries to use his body to throw her off but even that proves to be pointless. Struggling for air, Seth tries to fight against her but his body is starting to feel slow and sluggish. Words are pouring out of Vanessa's mouth even as she tightens her grip on his throat; screaming that somehow this is all Richie's fault. Dark spots are beginning to appear at the corner of Seth's eyes and his head starts to feel like it's made of cotton wool as he fights to stay conscious. Vanessa is screaming at the top of her lungs now but a familiar quietness has already snuck its way into Seth's head. It's the same quietness that he used to get whenever his Pa decided he needed a good thrashing. Looking up, gasping for air, it surprises Seth that instead of Vanessa, he sees his fathers face; screwed up in anger and bearing down on him.

 

"You little shit!" he'd snarl, his hand striking out and catching Seth across the face, "I told you and the retard to keep the fucking noise down!"

 

Over time Seth had learned that crying didn't help whenever Pa gave him a good crack with his knuckles; in the end, he'd leaned not to feel anything. He'd see that look, that hateful, spiteful look, that meant pain was surely coming his way and it was like Seth didn't exist anymore. It was almost like he just floated away, away from all the yelling and the name calling until he was needed again; usually when Pop started on Richie. One of Richie's doctors had explained to him that the reason why Richie's delusions were so vivid was because he had created a whole new narrative in his head, as the reality of what was really happening to him was too much for him to cope with. Seth had shifted uncomfortably in his seat as the doc went on to explain something called the Fawn Technique; it sounded pretty similar to what he used to do. Apparently, it was a bit like playing dead or being as submissive as possible until the predator that's attacking you gives up and moves onto something else. Seth hadn't liked that analogy; it made him sound weak and like he wanted to get kicked about like a football. Then he'd ended up shouting at Richie, telling him that this Fawn thing was rubbish and that he could have fought back if he wanted to; their dad wasn't that tough. That's when Richie had laid his head on Seth's shoulder and told him he was being an idiot, of course they couldn't have stopped what was happening to them; they were only little kids. Seth isn't so little anymore though and whilst he might never have been able to stop his dad, he's sure as hell going to try and stop Vanessa. 

 

"THEY DON'T LOVE YOU!" Vanessa screams as she releases her hands from around Seth's neck, bringing him back to consciousness, " _I'M_ THE ONLY ONE THAT LOVES YOU!"

 

Gasping for breath, Seth tries to roll to his side in a vain attempt to dislodge her, but Vanessa still won't let go. A fist hits him above the eye, almost knocking him out again, and he barely has time to react before Vanessa is swinging at him again. Anger and desperation pouring out of her, and the look on her face is completely savage as she raises her fist again. It's then that Seth realises that she could quite easily kill him; there's a rage in her eyes that he's only ever seen in his father before. A rage thats designed to hurt no matter what you try and do to stop it and suddenly Seth feels like a little boy again; frightened and afraid. 

 

 

"Pa stop," Seth chokes out as Vanessa brings her fist down onto him again, "Please!"

 

Childhood memories that he'd long since buried come back at him in flashes and Seth can't quite figure out whats real or not. It's all so vivid; like he's right back in that nightmare. They'd been eight and six when their dad had dragged them out of bed in the middle of the night, Richie holding on tight to the back of Seth's t-shirt as they lined up against the wall in the hallway with their hands outstretched. Pa was smashed on beer and cheap whiskey, insisting he was going to find out how clever the "Dumbass and the Retard" he had gotten stuck with were, pulling off his belt as he talked. It was a game he told them; get the answer wrong and his belt would make short work out of you.  

 

"You're up first Dumbass," Pop had sneered as he made Seth hold his hands out, "Let's see if you've got more brain cells than the Retard over here."

 

The questions were all taken from the crossword in the Sunday paper and Seth already knew he didn't have a hope in hell of getting any of the answers right. He didn't mind so much though, even as Pa cracked his belt against the wall near his ear because it meant that Richie wouldn't get hit. Mostly Pa just tormented Richie with words or cruelty, like when he made him eat all of Peaches' left over dog food; laughing nastily at him as Richie threw up on the carpet. Being hit had only hurt for a bit, and the bleeding never lasted very long, but even back then Seth had worried what the constant name calling and punishments were doing to his brother. Even as a small child Richie had always seemed permanently on edge and full to the brim with tension. 

 

"You really are the dumb one; ain't you?" Pa had sneered when Seth was unable to answer his first question; swinging the belt down as Seth shut his eyes tight and braced himself for pain.

 

Only the pain didn't come, instead, there was a yelp next to him and Seth opened his eyes to find a big, red welt across Richie's hand. Laughing at them both, Pa told them he hadn't said _which_ one of them would get the belt. Seth couldn't get any of the answers right that night, no matter how hard he'd tried, and by the last question Richie was cut and bleeding all over.

 

"Looks like there might be some brains in the fucked up head of yours, after all, Retard," Pop had chuckled as he gave Richie another hard whack, "Maybe you aren't so useless after all." 

 

Then he'd dragged Richie off to the basement as punishment for being an "insufferable little know-it-all", slamming the door shut behind them, and leaving Seth standing alone in the dark. All night Seth had waited; huddled down in his bed and for Richie to come back. At some point, he must have fallen asleep, because he woke the next morning to find Richie curled up asleep next to him with dried tear tracks streaked down his face. Those were the times that Seth thought their dad was going to kill him or Richie; his rage was like a hurricane that kept battering them against the ground. Sometimes he even wished for it but then his eyes would fall on Richie, cowering in the corner or begging their dad to stop. Vanessa is still screaming atop him; her fist connecting heavily with his shoulder as Seth stares up at her. He'd left Richie all on his own once before, stranded in a hospital whilst Seth pumped his veins full of shit. Not again though and Seth's survival instinct, the one he'd had to use _every day_ of his life when he was a kid, kicks in. Grabbing Vanessa by the wrist as she goes to hit him again, Seth yanks her arm away from him. As she brings up her other hand to slap him, Seth catches her by the other wrist.

 

"GET THE FUCK OFF ME!" she cries as Seth hooks his leg around her waist and flips her over, "I SAID GET THE FUCK OFF ME!!"

 

Perhaps the only good thing about having a mentally unstable brother was that Seth had learned pretty quickly how to restrain someone without hurting them. It was all about using their own body against them and he has Vanessa pinned beneath him and unable to move in two minutes flat. Unfortunately, that still doesn't stop the barrage of noise coming out of her, as she twists around like something out of the exorcist. Rifling through her pockets, Seth quickly finds his car keys as slips them safely out of sight.  

 

"QUIET!!" he roars and Vanessa is finally shocked into blessed silence for a moment or two.

 

They lay there; both breathing heavily with exertion. The rabid animal that had taken over Vanessa vanishes almost instantly and she starts to cry loudly. Seth isn't stupid enough to let her up though as Vanessa might be wailing away like she's on stage at the Oscars, there’s are no tears coming out of her eyes. He's been around enough crazy people at Richie's hospital to know when someones faking their sincerity, so he just waits for her to shut up. It doesn't take long; Vanessa seems to sense that he's unmoved by her tears so she tries a different tactic. 

 

"I'm sorry," she whispers, her eyes wild and desperate, "I didn't mean it, you _know_ I didn't."

 

Seth lets out a derisive snort; at least his Pa never made up excuses when he laid his hands on his kids. It was almost like he was proud of it, seeing the black and blue bruises forming on small arms and legs. Vanessa meant it all right, she meant every bit of it and Seth is almost surprised that she hasn't lashed out like this before. Their verbal sparring he was used to, but physical? She'd slapped him a couple of times and they'd pushed each other but it had never gotten to _this_ level of aggression. 

 

"It was what that little beast and your brother did to me earlier," Vanessa explains frantically as she tries to pull herself free, "I wouldn't have gotten so upset if it hadn't been for them!"

 

Huh, Seth was wondering when Richie and Kate were going to get the blame for Vanessa hulking out and beating the shit out of him. He's quite certain that if Kate ever finds out about Vanessa's little stunt with the hospital, she will _beat the shit_ out of her. Not that he's going to tell either of them about any of this; they've already had enough to deal with tonight. However, a trickle of blood drips down his ear and Seth grudgingly accepts that he's going to have to tell them _something_. Richie's going to be so upset when he sees me, Seth thinks sadly, shifting uncomfortably as Vanessa tries to get free. Anything to do with Seth getting hurt or injured always sends Richie into a tailspin; yet another issue their fucked up childhood had left them with. 

 

"…Thatfuckinglittlebitchshesprobablylaughingatmerightnow, Vanessa babbles away, ignoring Seth's insistence that she shut up,"Andthatfuckingfreakalwaysthink…"

 

"I said QUIET!!" Seth yells at her again, shaking her by the arms until she stares up at him with a look of sadness that's so fake, he almost laughs. 

 

Looking down at her, the desperation still burning in her eyes as she pretends to cry again, Seth is ashamed that he even feel for Vanessa's act in the first place. She didn't care about him, she only cared about what she wanted and love she professes for him is just as fake as her hair extensions.   

 

"You're going to wait here until I leave, do you understand me?" he informs her, grabbing her by the chin and tilting her head up towards him, " You don't come near me or my family ever again, are we clear?"

 

"But Seth I-"

 

"I SAID ARE WE CLEAR?!" Seth shouts, cutting through whatever bullshit excuse Vanessa was going to make up. 

 

He's almost loosened his grip when Vanessa erupts into fury once more; her face dropping the vulnerable facade she's put up as she rages at him.  

 

" _I_ SAVED YOU," she lashes out at him, spit flying from her mouth, " _I'M_ THE ONE THAT PROTECTED YOU FROM THAT LUNATIC! EVEN WHEN YOU DRAGGED HIM BACK HERE! _I_ MADE SURE THAT HE COULDN'T DO ANY MORE DAMAGE TO YOU! HE WAS ALREADY SO FUCKED UP THAT IT DIDNT EVEN TAKE LONG TO GET HIM BACK IN THE HOSPITAL; WHERE HE SHOULD HAVE FUCKING STAYED!"

 

Seth stares down at her as he takes in what Vanessa's said to him; somethings not right… 

 

"What do you mean "It didn't even take long to get him back in the hospital", what did you do to him Vanessa?" he asks, suddenly fearful, "ANSWER ME!"

 

"I just did it to show you what Richie's _really_ like," she simpers, falling back into her sad clown act, "If I had to give him a little push then so be it; you _needed_ to see what I'd been telling you all along!"

 

It feels like someones dumped a bucket of ice cold water over Seth, his whole body going cold with shock. Vanessa wouldn't… she wouldn't go that far… would she?

 

"It was _you_ , wasn't it?" Seth realises as Vanessa continues to look like a wounded puppy, " _You_ switched Richie's pills that time, didn't you?"

 

"OF COURSE I SWITCHED THOSE FUCKING PILLS," Vanessa spits, her expression full of malice and contempt, "AND I'D FUCKING DO IT AGAIN! DON'T YOU SEE SETH? I DID IT BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT YOU!"

 

Seth drops her hands like she'd burned him; backing away from her so fast that he almost falls off the bed. Bile starts to rise in his throat as flashes of memory from that _horrible_ night come flooding back to him. He'd been so stupid, stupid to ever have left Richie alone with a woman who clearly hated him. Eddie had known… Eddie had _told_ him but Seth was too blind to see it. If he hadn't gotten home in time… Vanessa seems to take her release as a sign that Seth forgives her, or some other fucked up reason because she starts crawling towards him; her hand reaching out for him. 

 

"Don't you touch me," Seth warns as her fingertips almost brushing his knee, "Don't come any closer to me."

 

His whole body has gone rigid with shock but Vanessa keeps getting _closer_ and _closer_ and Seth fears that if she touches him, he's likely to vomit. How could he have not seen it? Even Kate, who wasn't even around back then, had said she thought Vanessa had something to do with it when Seth had told her the story. He'd even gotten pissed at her, telling her that she wasn't taking Richie's illness seriously enough and that she needed to be more vigilante. 

 

"Don't you try and tell me what I or don't take seriously when it comes to Richie Seth Gecko," she'd said, her eyes flashing, before she'd stomped out of his apartment and refused to speak to him for over a week. 

 

He'd ended up buying her a tub of ice cream and some bubble bath by way of an apology after Richie started asking why Kate was giving Seth the cold shoulder. Whilst she had accepted the gifts and the apology, Kate hadn't backed down on her opinion of Vanessa, and in the end, they'd agreed not to speak about it again. So that was two people who'd clearly been able to see what Seth was completely blind to; why the fuck didn't he listen?!

 

"It's fine Seth," Vanessa tells him softly just as she creeps up next to him, "Everything's out in the open now; I know about Kate and you know about how I was protecting you from Richie."

 

She's actually smiling at him; beaming like this is the best thing that's ever happened to them. Seth leans over the side of the bed and vomits loudly; stomach acid burning his throat. The only person Seth hadn't ever needed saving from was Richie. In fact, even when Richie was at his most delusional, he was _still_ more concerned about Seth's safety than his own. Seth's lost count of the number survival kits he's got in his car because Richie was worried Seth might get caught up in a hurricane, and blow away like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. Vanessa is still beaming at him, inching her way closer to him even when Seth lashes out at her with his hand; he can't bear for her to touch him.

 

"Don't you see how perfect this is?! Now you can _finally_ see how far I'm willing to go to protect you, to save you from that wretched brother of yours," she tells him gleefully as Seth feels the bile start to rise in his throat again, “You wouldn't need help if Richie was normal, if he wasn't a nut job trying to destroy the one thing that made you happy; our marriage." 

 

Seth isn't listening to her as he starts to retch again; a wave of sickness hitting him as he thinks about what _could_ have happened to his brother if Vanessa had kept him longer at that stupid bar. The memory of that night was seared into Seth's brain like it had been put there with a branding iron and the charred remains still haunted him on occasion. It had been two months since Richie had finally been released from the hospital when Seth had begun to worry that all might not be quite right with his brother. At first, he'd just put it down to Richie adjusting to being back in a home environment, when he'd noticed that the youngest Gecko seemed to be a little off. It was subtle at first, small things like Richie not eating certain foods or fidgeting incessantly, but over time it had gradually gotten worse. Much to Vanessa's annoyance, Richie had been very clingy towards Seth when he first came home and liked to have him in close proximity at all times. Seth was more than happy to be needed again and had done everything he could to help his brother settle back into "normal" life.

 

"For God's sake Seth," Vanessa had huffed when Seth had told her he'd be staying in Richie's room that night, "He's not a baby!"

 

"I can't leave him on his own," Seth had told her as he carried a pillow and a blanket into Richie's room, "He needs me."

 

Then all of a sudden he wasn't wanted anymore; cast out whilst Richie spent most of his time holed up in his room. Vanessa had moaned that Richie was just sulking because he couldn't have Seth all to himself and started trying to drag him out of the house every chance she could get. Seth had dug his heels in, insisting that Richie was still fragile and it wasn't fair to leave him on his own after being stuck inside a hospital for years. Time; that was all Richie needed, Seth told himself, as he remade Richie's dinner for the third time. Eventually, Vanessa's nagging and bitching had got the better of him, as it often did, and he'd reluctantly agreed to go out to dinner with her. Richie had barely responded when Seth had stuck his head round his bedroom door to say bye, but Vanessa had dragged him away before he could do anything about it. He'd had been acting weird all week but Seth managed to convince himself that this was just Richie being his regular odd self. Still, the feeling that something wasn't right had picked away at him all evening and Seth had barely listened to Vanessa prattle on about some new filing system she'd implemented at work. 

 

"My boss says I'm too good to be a receptionist," she'd gloated, whilst Seth had stuffed pasta down his throat three times as fast as he normally would, " _He_ said that I've got the potential to be his assistant; isn't that great?!"

 

Once they had finished dessert Seth had insisted that they leave; Richie hadn't answered any of his text he'd or picked up when Seth had secretly called him from the bathroom. Vanessa wasn't happy and spent the car ride home bitching about how Richie always spoiled everything, glaring darkly at the extra slice of tiramisu Seth had brought home for his brother. She was still moaning when they opened the front door to find a bloody handprint smeared across the wall that leads from the hallway to the living room. Seth still remembers that feeling, like his whole body, had gone numb, as he'd charged through the doorway. Puddles of blood were splattered on the floor; as if someone had just wandered around and hadn't even realised that they were bleeding. 

 

"RICHIE?!" Seth had shouted, taking the steps two at a time and lunging towards the kitchen; his heart hammering so fast he thought his chest was going to explode. 

 

In his haste to get to his brother, Seth had almost skidded over in a large pool of blood in the kitchen doorway; grabbing the doorframe before he hit the floor. That's when he heard the yelling and found Richie standing in the middle of the kitchen in a completely manic state; blood dripping out of a large hole in his hand. The snake lady was back again, or so Seth had gathered from whatever Richie was ranting and raving about, and he did his best to remain calm as Richie paced back and forth.

 

"Richie," he said gently as he took a step closer, "Richie it's Seth; come on buddy let me see your hand."

 

Richie jumped about three feet in the air when Seth touched his elbow; the knife in his hand clattering to the floor. Seth had quickly kicked away and steered Richie towards one of the dining table chairs and made him sit down.

 

"Seth?" Richie asked, sounded confused and disorientated; like he wasn't even sure where he was. 

 

"Yeah, it's just me buddy," Seth had told him as calmly as he could, kneeling down in front of Richie so as not to frighten him, "Can I see your hand for a sec?"

 

Richie had looked down at his bloody hand like he was just seeing it for the first time, and his whole body started shaking. Something just didn't seem right, Seth can remember thinking that at the time. Even when Richie had been self-harming, before all the crazy vampire stuff, he'd still been “present” and known what he was doing. This just didn't feel like all the other times Richie had hurt himself but Seth just couldn't put his finger on as to why. 

 

"I didn't… I don't…" Richie had spluttered, looking desperately at Seth for some sort of explanation; tears rolling down his face. 

 

"Shh…shhhh…It's fine, it's ok, just let me take a look," Seth had soothed, brushing away Richie tears before snatching up a tea towel, "You'll feel better once I've taken a look at that for you."

 

The cut was deep; deep enough that Richie was going to need stitches, which unfortunately meant going to the hospital. Soaking up the blood, Seth discovered that Richie had carved that weird looking eye thing that he'd kept drawing when he'd first started becoming unwell. There was too much blood though and in the end, Seth has to secure two tea towels with some duct tape just to stem the flow. Weirdly, Richie had remained very calm throughout whilst Seth constantly reassured him that this was nothing to worry about; he'd just need a couple of stitches. Richie had seemed to be listening to him but he kept repeating that he hadn't meant to cut himself and that his head was hurting.  

 

"You're going to be fine, ok?" Seth had told him, as he secured the tea towels with more duct tape, "Just fine."

 

It had been difficult to know what to make of it at the time; normally it wasn't this easy to get Richie out a delusional state. He didn't seem all that delusional though, more like he was flitting between being completely lucid and then being sucked back down into his snake vampire fantasy. In the end, they'd sat quietly for a few moments; Seth stroking the back of Richie's hand to try and to help bring him back to the present. He was just gearing up to explaining that he was going to have to take Richie to a hospital to get his hand stitched up when the kitchen door flew open. 

 

"What the fuck have you done to my kitchen, Richard?" Vanessa had screeched as she took in the blood splattered all over the floor, "I hope you know that you'll be cleaning this up!" 

 

Richie's calm demeanour had rapidly disintegrated after that and he had freaked out completely; screaming that Vanessa was one of those tentacle things he was so frightened of. It was complete mayhem after that, as Richie desperately tried to find a way of escape and almost ended up jumping out of the window; Vanessa still yelling about her kitchen. The brothers had ended up in a tumble on the floor, arms and legs flailing, with Seth desperately trying to keep a hold of Richie. 

 

"They're going to kill us all!" Richie had cried as he desperately tried to free himself, "LET ME GO SETH!"

 

In the end, Seth had managed to lock his arms around Richie's chest, like how the nurses had shown him and held him onto him tightly. Despite the fact that her presence was clearly making everything ten times worse, Vanessa was still scolding Richie about the mess he'd made. Every time she got close to him, snapping about how the blood was going to leave a stain and her expensive towels were ruined, Richie had cried out in fear and struggled even harder to get away from her. 

 

"YOU'RE SCARING HIM!" Seth had yelled at her, whilst Vanessa was informing Richie that he would be paying for a professional cleaner, "JUST GO AND CALL EDDIE!"

 

Huffing loudly, she had flounced off and after a minute or two and Seth could hear talking loudly and rudely to Uncle Eddie; still moaning about her fucking kitchen. 

 

"You're all right," he said softly, Richie trembling with fear in his arms, "You're gonna be all right."

 

Richie hadn't said a word after that; not even when Seth had bundled him up in a blanket and broken half the speed limits to get him to a hospital. It wasn't that far away but Seth had spent the whole car ride feeling increasingly sick with fear. What if they took Richie away again? What if there really wasn't anything they could do for Richie this time? There was no way he could face another five years without his brother, he just can't. In the end, he'd just decided to get Richie in and out as quickly as possible, praying that nobody would notice that Richie was muttering quietly to himself. Thankfully it was a Saturday night, and the poor staff were more concerned with stopping the drunks fighting with each other or passing out in the corridors, then the odd young man with a weird cut on his hand. Seth had waited with baited breath whilst Richie remained mute as a nurse stitched his wound up; clinging tightly to Seth with his other hand. He'd had to pry Richie off him, promising he'd be as quick as possible, when he stepped out to sign some papers; that's when it all went to shit. Seth had sprinted back from the reception desk to find Richie having a full on break down as two nurses called security and tried to calm him down. Nothing worked and Seth could only stand and watch as Richie started screaming about blood drinking, demons and the ever present tentacle people as three security men had wrestled him to the ground. To add the icing on the cake, Uncle Eddie had turned up at the exact moment a nurse had jabbed a flailing Richie with a sedative whilst Seth begging them not to hurt his brother. Vanessa had slunk in behind Eddie and had watched everything unfold with a barely contained smirk on her face. It was only there for a split second and Seth had always thought that he'd imagined it. Nobody could be that cruel, could they? Then she was fawning all over Seth and started pulling him away as soon as Eddie had rushed over to Richie and trying to convince him to leave with her. 

 

"You don't need to be here Seth," Vanessa had told him when Richie's unconscious body was hauled up off the floor and onto a bed, "He's fine now anyway."

 

Seth even remembers that she'd pulled harshly by the hand to get him to leave and that he almost went with her. It was like Vanessa had had complete control over him until Richie had let out a distressed moan and Seth had rushed back to his bedside. Vanessa hadn't liked that, he could see it written all over her face at the time, but he was too distracted with what the fuck was going on with Richie to be overly concerned. Then she'd sat herself down in a chair and watched sulkily as Seth had fretted over his brother, her teeth gnashing together every so often. Uncle Eddie had given him a right grilling as he demanded to know what the hell was going on and why Richie was in such a state. 

 

"You were supposed to look after him!" Eddie had raged as they watched two orderlies strapping Richie's wrists down.

 

"It's not Seth's fault!" Vanessa had snapped before Seth could even get a word out, "Richie is the one you should be yelling at, not him."

 

Eddie had narrowed his eyes at her but said nothing more as he pulled a chair up to Richie's bedside and talked quietly to him. The sedative had been a strong one so it was unlikely that Richie could even hear him, as Vanessa kept pointing out, but Eddie remained undeterred. Seth ended up hovering between the two camps and tried to cling on to the hope that Richie would be fine and that this was just a blip. Something wasn't right; Seth knew that much and thankfully the doctors seemed to agree with him as there was suddenly a flurry of activity around his brother.

It had taken three blood tests and a urine sample to determine that the cause of Richie's outburst had been due to there being no antipsychotic medication in his system. Seth had been stumped; he gave Richie his medication every day and there was no way he wasn't taking it properly. He'd been even more confused when Eddie had pulled out Richie's meds from his pocket and insisted that the doctor test them. The result had come back that Richie had been taking a daily dose of breath mints and everyone, including the doctors, had been completely flummoxed. 

 

"That means that he doesn't have to go back to the hospital doesn't it?" Seth had asked desperately, "It must have been a faulty box or a mistake at the factory! He'll be fine once he starts taking the meds again properly." 

 

They'd given Richie a dose of his usual medication whilst he'd been sleeping and once he came around he'd been completely fine if a little woozy. He answered all the standard "Are You Crazy Questions" from the doctor and passed with flying colors. The doctor had still needed a little convincing once he'd read Richie's medical file but Seth had insisted that Richie couldn't have messed with the bottle. Ever since Richie had come home Seth had kept all his meds locked away in the medicine cabinet and they had a proper routine worked out when it was time for Richie to take them. Then they waited for what seemed like hours whilst a team of doctors deliberated on the situation as Seth silently plotted a way to bust Richie out of there if things didn't go his way.

 

"This is ridiculous," Vanessa had grumbled as they waited for the doctor to come back, "They should have taken him away by now and not kept us sitting around."

 

Richie had been dozing, Eddie stroking his hair softly as he rested, but his eyes snapped open when he heard Vanessa's words. Pulling at the restraints before they could stop him Richie had started to panic and burst into loud, noisy tears. Seth sprang forward had desperately tried to shush him, glancing back and forth from the curtains to make sure the doctor wasn't about to come barging through. Nothing worked would calm Richie, not even when Eddie undid one of the restraints and tried to reassure Richie that he'd be going home once the sedative wore off. 

 

"I - *hic* - don't want - *hic* - to go back - *hic* - to the hospital!" Richie had cried, tears pouring down his face, "Please, please - *hic* - don't make me - *hic* - go back, Seth!"

 

Seth had been about to tell Richie that no, of course, he wouldn't be going back, when Vanessa had let out a loud huff of indignation. They'd been at the hospital for over six hours now and her patience was wearing thin, no matter how many times Eddie politely told her that she didn't need to be here.

 

"Well perhaps you should stop doing crazy things then, like cutting yourself to piece's and bleeding all over my nice clean kitchen," she had snapped ignoring Seth's insistence that she keep quiet and the look of distaste plainly etched on Eddie's face, "And stop putting poor Seth through all this inconvenience; our dinner plans were ruined because of you!"

 

"I'm sorry… I didn't mean…" Richie had sobbed despite Eddie explaining that there had just been a mix up in his medication and he'd just have to spend a few nights to make sure his hand was ok. 

 

"You'll be going back to the psych ward and you'll be grateful for it," Vanessa had interrupted, before Seth could take control of the situation, "It was ridiculous you even leaving in the first place!"

 

Then she'd sat back in her chair with her arms crossed and look of pure disdain as Richie had let out a loud wail and started sobbing into his pillow; terrified he was going to spend another five years away from his family. Seth can remember even now at the look of shock that had passed over him as he stared at his wife in horror and wondered where all this cruelty was coming from.

 

"She needs to leave the room," Eddie had told him with barely suppressed rage when Vanessa had started muttered that Richie's wailing was making her ear drums hurt, "Now."

 

"Richie, it's fine buddy," Seth had said, ignoring Eddie's protests and Vanessa's over dramatic eye roll, "Please don't get upset it's just a misunderstanding."

 

It didn't seem to be sinking in though and Richie just cried harder and louder and his distress had cut through Seth like a sharp blade. He'd promised Richie that he wouldn't take him back to the psychiatric hospital and leave him stuck in there like last time. 

 

"Oh for god sake stop acting like a baby Richie!" Vanessa had scolded as she threw her hands up in irritation, "Seth, this is ridiculous; get the nurse to give him another sedative or something."

 

"I don't want any more drugs!' Richie had screamed as he desperately tried to pull himself free from the other restraints, "I WANT TO GO HOME!" 

 

Everything rapidly descended into chaos after that as Richie; panic stricken at the thought of yet more psychiatric interference had attempted to climb out of his hospital bed. Vanessa had done little to help the situation by continuously snapping at Richie to keep his voice down whilst Uncle Eddie and Seth had wrestled Richie back into bed.

 

"GET HER OUT OF HERE SETH!" Eddie had shouted at the same time as he tried to stop Richie from undoing the other restraint, "GET HER OUT RIGHT NOW!"

 

Despite not wanting to leave his brother, Uncle Eddie had been in no mood to argue and Seth had hauled Vanessa up by her elbow and pushed her through the flimsy curtains. 

 

"Are you going to let him speak to me like that?" Vanessa had hissed at him already enraged that Seth would seemingly take his uncle's side over hers, "I was only saying what you all were thinking!"

 

They'd ended up having a massive row right in the middle of the hospital corridor with Vanessa screeching at him that she didn't want a crazy person living in her house and Seth yelling back that Richie was there first. Eventually, Eddie had ripped the curtain open and told them both to "Shut the fuck up" and "Get the fuck out of here until you've learned to keep a civil tongue in your head." Seth had argued and even tried to push his way past Eddie to check on Richie but Vanessa had already grabbed a hold of him.

 

"Let's just go Seth," she had insisted as she dragged Seth away before he got a chance to say goodbye to Richie, "They don't need you here."

 

Seth had thought about that incident a lot over the years but his fear over Richie had always overshadowed any concerns he had over Vanessa's behaviour. Vanessa wouldn't be that cruel he'd tell himself whenever the image of Vanessa's smug little smile when she'd first seen Richie had floated to the surface. Eddie, on the other hand, had told him flat out that he thought Vanessa had something to do with it, saying that she was mean and cruel to Richie and that Seth was just too blind to see it. They'd had an awful row about it and Seth had said some stuff in the heat of the moment that he wished a thousand times over he could take back. Then Eddie had dealt the killer blow and taken Richie to stay with him for a few weeks which left Seth feeling alone and useless once more. 

 

"It's for the best," Vanessa had told him as she boxed up more of Richie's stuff than was necessary for a two-week stay at Eddie's. 

 

Seth vomits again; his stomach churning even though all that's coming up is water and stomach acid. Wiping his mouth on the back of his shaking hand Seth's shoulders slump downwards as implications of Vanessa's actions fully hit home. This whole time he thought he'd been protecting Richie from the monsters that seemed to haunt his brothers every step, not offering him up like a lamb to the slaughter for another one. Being a big brother was the one thing that Seth had always felt he'd ever been any good at but now he'd failed at that as well, Seth thinks bitterly as he tries not to retch again. He can still remember being really tiny and begging to hold the new baby and then crying loudly when Uncle Eddie said he was too little. In the end, Eddie had relented when the whole of Set's little face had turned bright red and his nephew's tantrum had started to reach epic proportions. That was decades ago but when Seth stared down at the small pink blob in his arms he decided right then and there that he was going to be the best big brother to Richie. It's only now he's realising what a poor job he's done. What if Richie had ended up back in the psychiatric hospital or worse? What if Seth had lost him for good that time? Vanessa is still sitting patiently next to him with a look of calm concern spreading over her face as Seth struggles to control his stomach and throws up one more time. 

 

"I'll get you a wash cloth," she says and before Seth can pull away she's stroking his head like a mother would a small child, "Get you cleaned up a bit."

 

Whilst Vanessa heads off to the bathroom Seth is unable to stop his body from shaking and his head is starting to become a jumbled mess of thoughts.  How could he have been so stupid not to notice that there had been a viper hiding out in the nest this whole time? Vanessa is coming back to him now with a damp washcloth in her hand and smiling at him like the whole previous few hours haven't happened. Like she hasn't just admitted that her little subterfuge with the pills couldn't have caused serious lasting damage. In that moment Seth doesn't think he's ever hated anyone as much as he hates Vanessa right now, not even his own father.  

 

"He could have died," Seth whispers dazedly and more to himself than to Vanessa, "He could have died."

 

"What?" Vanessa asks him as she dabs his face with the cool cloth, "You're not still going on about Richie, are you? I already explained all that. I was only doing what anybody else who cares about you would have done."

 

The cloth comes up to his face again and Seth smacks her hand away, sending the washcloth flying to the other side of the room. Vanessa frowns at him and her face twists in irritation as Seth stares at her with a cold, hard fury etched on his face. 

 

"HE COULD HAVE DIED!" Seth screams, suddenly finding himself on his feet and grabbing hold of Vanessa by the shoulders and shaking her hard, "HE COULD HAVE KILLED HIMSELF AND I WOULD HAVE BEEN LEFT ALL ALONE WITHOUT HIM!"

 

Even though Richie had been fine that thought had haunted Seth's every step and kept up at night when he thought about what could have happened if he hadn't come home sooner. What if Richie hadn't stopped at his hand when he dragged that knife across his skin? What if Seth had come home to a body lying on the ground all because he'd been out swigging on margaritas when he should have been at home? Vanessa had planned it all, he seethes as he shakes her even harder, she'd known exactly what would have happened if they'd gone to that stupid bar like she'd wanted to.    

 

"Seth, don't be like this," Vanessa begged, her hands clawing at his shirt as she stares at him imploringly, "It would have been for the best; you know that."

 

Seth's hands drop to his sides as he stares at her completely dumbfounded; how can Vanessa say something like that? Vanessa is still clinging onto his shirt but Seth pushes her roughly away because even looking at her is filling him with revulsion. How is this the person he married? More importantly, how did Seth allow himself to become so wrapped up in her that he'd essentially cut his whole family out of his life?

 

"Richie should have killed himself," Vanessa says firmly, nodding her head to as if to confirm this is how it should have been, "It was selfish of him not to have done it sooner knowing what all his antics were doing to you. How you had to suffer all these years looking after him." 

 

Seth shoves her away from him, hard, and Vanessa stumbles backward; tripping on the edge of the bed and colliding painfully with the floor. Words pour out of his mouth as he screams obscenities at her, towering over her and slamming his fist down hard onto the floor near her head. Vanessa cowers beneath him; bleating and crying as she demands to know why Seth is being so cruel to her. Richie was weird and odd and unstable and had no place in their lives, he'd be better off dead; why couldn't Seth see that? Roaring with rage, Seth spun around, his hand closing in around the first thing within his grasp and sends it hurtling into the wall. It's one of Vanessa's expensive perfume bottles and it explodes on contact; showering them both in heavily scented liquid, Vanessa yelling about how much money it cost. In a fit of fury, Seth picks up another one and sends it crashing after the first, his chest heaving with exertion as he screams at her to not say those horrible, hateful words. Every fibre of his being wants to lash out at Vanessa, to strike her so hard that she feels just a taste of what this has been like for him; but he won't. Vanessa has pushed him almost to breaking point in her determination to pry away the only thing that Seth has ever cared about, but not even that will make him be his father's son. Ray Gecko had fought every battle with his fists; be it man, woman or even his own kids. There had always been this look on Ray's face, an expression of pure malice, which made it all too clear that he had enjoyed hitting, beating and punching whatever got in his way. Seth was determined that neither he nor Richie would ever turn out like that, that they wouldn't use their fists to get what they wanted. A sharp pain registers in the centre of Seth's palms, his hands clenched tightly into fists as he backs away from Vanessa. By this point, his breathing is coming out in short bursts and Seth struggles to get a grip on himself as he backs away even further from Vanessa's huddled form. Glancing up, Seth catches sight of himself in the mirror on Vanessa's dressing table and his eyes go wide with shock. Blood is caked into his hair and smeared haphazardly down the side of his face, a large purple bruise is blossoming underneath his left eye and bloody scratches adorn his neck. A ring of mottled bruises wraps around his throat as a reminder from where Vanessa drug her thumbs and Seth brings his hand up to briefly touch the sore, swollen skin. How did they even get to this point? Somewhere near his feet, Vanessa is coming back to life like an old hot air balloon being re-inflated and she pulls herself to her feet; fixing Seth with a murderous stare.

 

"You pushed me!" Vanessa hisses at him, her face a mixture of shock and annoyance, "You pushed your own wife, the only person that has ever done anything for you because you think that…that thing cares about you?"

 

The laugh that issues from her is loud and hollow; like she finds Seth's continued insistence that he'd never, ever give up on Richie highly amusing. Vanessa is still laughing when Seth tries to push past her and tries to leave, telling her that he's had enough and is going to Richie's. Darting in front of him she catches him by the shoulders and rams her knee up between Seth's legs; sending him crashing to his knees, groaning in pain. Clutching his genitals, Seth groans in pain as Vanessa stares down at him and her laugh is quickly replaced by a low snarling sound. 

 

"You're not going anywhere," she spits, stomping down hard on Seth's already injured hand and ignores Seth's cries of pain as she strides over her dressing table.

 

Seth lies there, wheezing, as Vanessa pulls one f the draws out and scatters the contents all over the floor. The pain in his private parts in almost unbearable and Seth cups his genitals tenderly as he once again tries to struggle to his feet. He's managed to get his knees when Seth hears an all too familiar clicking noise and he looks up to find Vanessa pointing a gun directly at his forehead; her face wild. 

 

"Richie going to that hospital," she spits at him as her voice starts to rise in anger, the gun only inches from Seth's face, "And they're going to cut out all the messed up, freaky little bits of his brain that have made him such a nuisance to have to deal with for all these years!"

 

Seth swallows nervously and tries to remain as still as possible, keeping his expression neutral; this isn't the first time he's had a gun pointed at his head. Pop used to pull his revolver out and point it at his and Richie's heads if he felt that they were playing too loudly or just generally pissed him off. There would be times when he'd simply fire it into the wall right above Seth's head or push it into Richie's forehead; laughing spitefully when his children were so frightened that they wet themselves. Drunkards with guns Seth can handle, you just have to remain quiet and not make any sudden movements, but it's the unpredictable ones you have to watch out for. From his vantage point, he can see that Vanessa's hand is trembling slightly, the gun shaking ever so slightly but her teeth gritted in determination as she looms over him. 

 

"And me?" he asks her quietly as he slowly sits back on his heels, "What are you going to do with me, Vanessa? You know I'm not going to let you do that to Richie."

 

Ironically Seth is using his "Richie, Stop Being Crazy" voice that has served him pretty well when his brother was going off the rails and was unable to listen to reason. It was all about the tone and over the years Seth had found the perfect way to execute it to get Richie to calm down and take a breather. Not that any of that will even matter if Vanessa gets her wish and some ghoul in a white coat starts picking bits of Richie's brain apart. Vanessa doesn't even seem like she's listening to him though as her face eerily slides into a mask of calmness.

  

 

"You're going to be here with me silly," Vanessa tells serenely as if Seth is stupid for even asking, "You're going to be here with me and it's finally going to be like it was meant to be; just the two of us."

 

Seth clenches his teeth to stop himself from screaming out that there is no "just the two of us" anymore; their relationship is dead in the ground at Vanessa is just going to have to accept that. He doesn't though because if he kicks off now he's liable to end up with a bullet between his eyes and then there would be no one to protect Richie from Vanessa's wrath. 

 

"I don't think that's going to work," Seth explains as slowly rises to his feet, keeping his voice light and natural in the hope that she'll see sense, "You can't keep me locked in a bedroom forever and you know I'll never let you do that to Richie, you know that don't you Vanessa?"

 

It's not exactly a threat but the intention is clearly there and Vanessa cocks her head at him; her lips twisted into a smile. Oh, so we're gonna play it that way, Seth thinks to himself as Vanessa keeps the gun trained squarely at his forehead. You would have thought that she'd have learned by now that Seth doesn't play around when it comes to Richie.

 

"What exactly are you going to do to stop me?" she goads him, the smug of hers getting bigger like she knows something Seth doesn't, "You'll be sitting here, with me, when they come for him. Or did you think that hideous little girl was going to help you?"

 

She's mocking him and Seth feels himself start to sweat because that's exactly what he was hoping for. If worst came to worst, Kate would be able to explain, much more eloquently than Seth could, that Richie has spent enough time in mental health facilities and that they've already worked through his rehabilitation program. It's worrying him though, that he couldn't get hold of either Richie or Kate before Vanessa smashed his phone to pieces. In retrospect, Seth should have text Kate and told her to take Richie and the dog to a motel or something and wait for him there. Then at least he wouldn't be freaking out like he is now that Richie has already been bundled off in a strait-jacket. Kate would have come over though, he keeps trying to tell himself, if something had happened and she couldn't get hold of Seth, Kate would have come straight over to the apartment. That's if she hasn't gone and gotten herself arrested and carted off to jail; Kate wouldn't let Richie go without one hell of a fight. 

 

"I told you already, it's all been taken care of," Vanessa tells him primly whilst  Seth tries to figure out if there's a way he can get the gun from her without getting himself shot in the process, "I've already signed the papers, Richie is going. The sooner you get used to that the better." 

 

Sweat trickles down the back of Seth's neck and he can literally feel all the blood drain from his face as fear and panic start to rampant through his body. With a sinking feeling he realizes that Vanessa is right; unless Kate has some more secret ninja skills she can deploy, she won't be able to do anything to stop Richie being taken away. They'll drag him out of Eddie house, kicking and screaming like last time, and once they're done picking away at him all Kate and Seth will be left with is a shell. A shell that won't be able to move, speak or have any idea who he is, let alone who they are. That is too horrible to even think about so Seth focuses on the only thing that matters right now; getting out of here alive.

 

"I'm going to leave now Vanessa," Seth informs her, keeping his movements slow and easy as he takes a step forward, "I'm going to leave and call that hospital and tell them that you made a mistake; Richie is fine and we won't be needing their services."

 

Vanessa's face twists into an angry grimace with spit flying out of her mouth and her eyes bulging as she aims the gun at the wall and fires; showering Seth in plaster. Before Seth can even so much as move Vanessa is right in front of him with the gun waving wildly in her hand. 

 

"YOU'RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE!" she roars, firing another shot beside Seth's ear and making his eardrums throb, "YOU'RE STAYING HERE WITH ME UNTIL THEY TAKE THAT FREAK AWAY!"

 

Vanessa is so blinded by rage, her whole body twisting and contorting as she screams at him, that Seth decides to take a chance and rushes at her. Fortunately, Vanessa is too busy yelling to notice until it's too late; her eyes going wide with shock as Seth locks his hand around her wrist. Her determination for Seth to understand that Richie is a "Crazy messed up freak" is probably the only thing that prevented him getting his head blasted off. Digging his thumbs into the pressure points of her wrist, Seth tries to shake the gun free whilst Vanessa tries to claw her hand free. Thankfully she's got nothing to hit him with this time and Seth is easily able to bend her hand back just enough that Vanessa lets out a howl of pain. Seth finds himself not caring all that much and twists harder but Vanessa still won't let go and starts trying to drag him to the ground. Cursing, she spits directly in Seth's face and continues to try and kick his legs out from underneath him. Her foot collides painfully with the back of Seth's knee and he finally loses it.

 

"DID YOU THINK I WAS JUST GOING TO LET YOU DO THAT TO HIM, HUH?" Seth yells at her, spit running down his cheek as he shakes her arm back and forth, "DID YOU THINK I WAS JUST GOING TO HAND RICHIE OVER TO YOU AND LET YOU START MESSING AROUND WITH HIS HEAD?"

 

"I'M PROTECTING YOU!" Vanessa screeches back at him as Seth continues to try and disarm him, "WHY CAN'T YOU SEE THAT?!" 

 

There's no reasoning with her and Seth doesn't have time to wait about for it to finally click in Vanessa's head that Richie is not this crazy monster that she's making him out to be. The more time he wastes on her crazy ass the less chance he actually has of preventing Richie from becoming a vegetable. 

 

 

"DROP IT!" Seth demands as Vanessa continues to try and pull herself free, "I SAID DROP IT!"

 

In the end, he has to bring his elbow up and hit Vanessa hard in the chest as she struggles against him; screaming all the while. It works though and Vanessa drops to the floor completely winded, the gun falling from her grasp and flying across the floor to disappear underneath the bed. Everything in him is screaming at him to find the gun before Vanessa can snatch it up again but Seth doesn't have time for that and instead he bolts for the bedroom door; wrenching it open. Behind him, a loud, angry wail rings out and Seth almost falls down the stairs in his haste to get out and into the relative safety of his car. He misses the last two steps; his legs skidding out from underneath him as he goes crashing to the floor and lands painfully near the front door. A plate hurtles into the wall in front of him, smashing into a million pieces and covering Seth's hair in bits of china. Vanessa standing at the top of the stairs and looking far crazier than Richie ever had as she launches another piece of crockery at him. Seth is just thankful that she didn't manage to find the gun even though he has to duck a second time as a cup explodes on the door in front of him.

 

"GET BACK HERE!" Vanessa screams, another plate already grasped in her hand, "GET THE FUCK BACK HERE NOW!"

 

Without even stopping to look at her Seth wrenches the door open and makes a dash for his car; another place narrowly missing his ear. Angry screaming follows him all the way out of the house and Seth sprints as fast as his legs will carry him to the other side of the road where his car is parked. Fumbling slightly as he rams the key in the lock in his desperation to escape, Seth eventually pulls it open and drags himself inside; slamming it shut behind him. 

 

"What the fuck did you get yourself into Gecko?" he says out loud, slumping forwards and resting his head on the steering wheel as he tries to catch his breath. 

 

The inside of his car seems blessedly calm and silent compared to the insanity he's just witnessed and Seth takes a few more minutes to collect himself. Vanessa hasn't followed him outside thank god but Seth can't afford to hang around if he's going to make sure that Richie keeps all his brains inside his head. Suddenly Seth's got a terrible vision or Richie strapped down to a bed and screaming for his brother whilst a man in a white coat looms over him with an ice pick. Not on my watch, Seth thinks savagely, snatching up his car keys from where he'd thrown them onto the seat opposite. He just needs to get home and everything will be fine; he can sort out whatever mess Vanessa has made from the comfort of Eddie's couch. Nobody is getting in that house though, not a doctor or a surgeon or whoever else that fucked up asylum chooses to send because Seth will be dead in the ground before he lets anything happen to Richie. The key is barely in the ignition when his wing mirror is suddenly blasted off and goes skidding across the road. 

 

"What the fuck?!" Seth mutters as he shifts around to find Vanessa standing on the front lawn; the gun aiming for his rear window.

 

"Oh shit!" Seth panics, diving across the front seat with only seconds to spare before a bullet pierces his back windshield and shattered glass sprays all over the back seat. 

 

What the fuck was the gun still doing in the house anyway, Seth thinks to himself as he risks a peek over the top of the seats. He'd gotten rid of it after Richie had woken him up in the middle of the night, ranting about how the mailman was some sort of tentacle creature that they needed protecting from. The mailman, Steve, had actually been very nice about the whole situation once Seth had explained why Richie kept yelling at him whenever he tried delivered their mail. Steve had even offered to sit down with Richie and explain that he came from Delaware and not one of the nine levels of Xibalba, or wherever the fuck it was, but Richie had been too far gone by that point and wouldn't listen to reason. In the end, Richie had written a very strongly worded letter to the post office to inform them that one of their employees was a demon from another dimension and what was their plan for resolving this? They laugh about it now, well Seth does, but at the time there was no way that Seth was going to keep a loaded weapon in the house. Back then Richie had been petrified of his own shadow and Seth didn't need to add attempted murder to everything else that was going on so he'd stashed it at El Ray's where Richie, or anyone else, was likely to find it. How on earth had Vanessa got her hands on it was anyone's guess? Perhaps she picked it up on one of her daily stalking trips when she was following Seth and Kate around and breaking into places? Seth would have to figure that little puzzle out later though because Vanessa is aiming the gun at the car again and looking more demented than ever.

 

"I SAID GET BACK HERE!" Vanessa screams, waving the gun around like a maniac, whilst Seth frantically scrambles around for his dropped keys, "WE'RE NOT DONE TALKING YET!"

 

There's another loud crack as a bullet slams into the ground by the front tire, sending bits of gravel flying through the air. Swearing loudly Seth ducks behind his steering wheel just in case Vanessa decides to aim for the driver's window. Why aren't any of his snobby neighbors coming out to help him or at least peek out from behind their curtains to see what‘s happening? What's the point of moving to the suburbs if your nosy neighbors that have the cops on speed dial for any minor infraction yet decline to do so when a crazy woman is attacking you with a gun?! Seth doesn't much fancy having his brains splattered all over the road, at least not before he's signed the divorce papers and made sure Richie isn't going to have his brain sucked out through his nose. Vanessa has got the gun pointed at his window, looking more enraged than ever that Seth dared to even try and escape her clutches. She's still screaming stuff at him but it all just sounds like a bunch or random crazy thoughts that she can't keep straight in her head and Seth desperately scrabbles around for his dropped keys. 

 

"Come on, come," Seth mutters wildly as he stretches his arm down onto the floor as far as it will go, "YES!"

 

Finally, his fingertips brush against the spiky metal of his car keys but it's too late because as soon as Seth sits back up, Vanessa takes aim and fires the gun directly at his window. Everything seems to go in slow motion after that and Seth finds himself frozen with shock as he stares back at Vanessa's vengeful face; this isn't how he wanted his life to end. He wanted to go when he was old and fat with a shit ton of grey hair and surrounded by his family, not trapped in his car and mowed down like a dog in the street. Vanessa's spiteful twisted face also wasn't on his list of things he'd liked to see before he kicked the bucket either.

 

"I'm sorry buddy," Seth whispers out loud, hoping that Richie won't do something stupid like blaming himself for all this, "Sorry I couldn't protect you."

 

Vanessa is snarling something at him as her finger squeezes hard on the trigger and Seth braces himself as he sits there with his keys lying limply in his hands; shutting his eyes tight. An angry roar issues from outside and Seth opens his eyes to find himself miraculously still alive and Vanessa practically hissing with rage as the gun clicks in her hand; it's out of bullets. 

 

"Thank you, Jesus, Joseph, Mary whoever the fuck is up there!" Seth groans as he slumps down low in his seat as all his senses seem to come rushing back to him, "Thank fucking Christ for that!"

 

If Seth does manage to get out of here alive then he's going to have to ask Kate about all that religious shit because it feels like he owes the big guy something. That will have to wait through because even with the lack of bullets, Vanessa doesn't show any signs of stopping. Despite almost attempting to murder him, she just keeps on coming like an enraged elephant that Seth had the misfortune to come across on safari. 

 

 "JESUS!" Seth yells when Vanessa hurls the gun at the remains of his rear view window, "JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!"

 

Striding towards the car like the Terminator with her nostrils flaring Vanessa lets out a stream of obscenities and Seth hastily tries to shove the key in the ignition. Perspiration is dripping off his hands now and it's making it difficult for him to get the key in the right position; the metal just keeps slipping through his fingers. He's almost got it when a shadow appears next to him and Seth thankfully has enough sense to quickly lock the car doors, seconds before Vanessa grabs hold of the handle and tries to pull it open. 

 

"SETH!" she screams as she beats on the window with her fists, "GET OUT OF THE FUCKING CAR!"

 

Vanessa looks completely deranged; her face a red mess of anger and her hair flies about as she slams herself against the car door. Letting out a loud scream Vanessa's fingers claw at the door frame as she desperately tries to rip it open; her acrylic nails snapping off as she attempts to reach Seth. There's no fucking way Seth getting out of this car; not now not ever. 

 

"ARE YOU NUTS??!" Seth yells as he fumbles his keys again whilst Vanessa pounds incessantly on the window and screams at him to open the door. 

 

Even though he's safe behind a thick steel door, Seth doesn't particularly want to find out what will happen if Vanessa ever manages to get the door open. If what she did to him back at the house is any indication of what Vanessa has in store than Seth doesn't like his chances very much, especially with that gun still hanging around. Almost as suddenly as it started, the pounding on the window stops and relief floods Seth's whole body as he looks out of the window as Vanessa strides back towards the house; her bedraggled hair swishing about as she walks. He's almost got the key in the ignition when Vanessa is back; this time carrying a crowbar.

 

"Oh shit," Seth yells, ramming the key in the ignition as fast as he can just as Vanessa lets out an angry howl and swings the crowbar high above her head and brings it smashing down on the car bonnet. 

 

Vanessa wails on the car with the crowbar and smashes huge dents into Seth's beloved vehicle; spitting with rage as she does so. Seth can only watch as Vanessa stalks around to the other side of the car and swings it at his one remaining wing mirror and sends it spinning across the road. 

 

"STOP IT!" Seth screams at her from the relative safety of his vehicle as Vanessa appears by his window again, growling like a wild animal. 

 

"MAYBE NOW I'M ACTING LIKE A CRAZY LOON," she bellows at him as she brings the metal rod crashing down against the doorframe, "YOU'LL FINALLY GIVE A SHIT!"

 

Splinters of paint and glass go flying in every direction as Vanessa continues to bash away at the car and Seth decides that it's now or never. Turning the key in the engine he quickly starts up the car, praying that it will actually move after all the damage a Vanessa has caused and revs the engine.

 

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE WAY!" he yells at her, revving the engine for the second time and praying that she's not stupid enough to stand in the front of the car.

 

With one last scream, Vanessa tosses the crowbar aside and charges around to the back of the car and tries to pull herself through the shattered back window. It's like some backward version of Alien with Vanessa's arm bursting through the broken glass as she tries to reach the lock. 

 

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Seth yells at her, twisting around in his seat as Vanessa shoves her hand even further into the vehicle, "JESUS CHRIST VANESSA!"

 

There's a trail of blood smeared down inside the car but Vanessa doesn't seem to care; her angry cries filling the entire car as her fingers desperately try and reach the lock. It's like she's possessed by some insatiable demon that just can't stand the fact that Seth doesn't want to have anything to do with her anymore. The sound of the car door lock springing open brings Seth back to his senses and he quickly pulls the handbrake off, gunning the engine loudly. Vanessa's almost got her leg in when Seth slams his foot on the accelerator, the tires spinning frantically as he takes off speeding; leaving Vanessa flat on her ass and screaming at him on the driveway. He’s been speeding for a full ten minutes before Seth pulls open the glove box and pulls out the secret phone he kept hidden in there. He brought it ages to talk to Richie on when Vanessa had kicked off about the amount of time Seth spent texting or calling his brother. With one eye on the road, Seth flips it open and is about to press the speed dial to Richie’s cell when he noticed the amount of missed calls he's got; three from Richie and thirteen from Kate. There’s a text message as well and Seth clicks it open; his heart beating wildly in his chest. It’s from Kate’s cell and Seth’s mouth goes dry as he reads the three short words;

 

**WHERE ARE YOU??!! WE NEED YOU HERE NOW!**

 

Slamming his foot down without any care that he’s doing almost double the speed limit; Seth drives to Eddie’s house as fast as he can. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun, dun, duuuunnnn! I'm so sorry this took me so long to update but "life" stuff got in the way; I'll be back to regular updates from now on. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and as always any comments, questions, and kudos are greatly appreciated! x

**Author's Note:**

> Dun, dun duuuunnnn!! Stay tuned for chapter two; are Seth and Kate having an affair or is Vanessa just barking up the wrong tree?
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed reading this; it was a blast to write!


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